National Lentil Festival

Tyrone Wells is coming to the National Lentil Festival!

2012-02-06T14:55:00.000-08:00

Tyrone Wells is coming to the National Lentil Festival August 18, 2012!!

Singer/Songwriter Tyrone Wells continues to win over fans across the nation with his powerful voice, heartfelt songs and engaging live shows. The Spokane, WA native began to hone his song-writing craft after moving to southern California, performing in coffee shops and building a fan base one convert at a time. Tyrone released two albums with Universal Republic, Hold On in 2006 and 2009's Remain. The 2010 independently released EP, Metal & Wood spent three weeks at #1 on the iTunes Singer/Songwriter album chart. Tyrone's newest album Where We Meet is set for release March 6th, 2012, with a nation-wide tour to follow supporting the album.

Tyrone's Career Highlights
- Metal & Wood - 3 weeks #1 - iTunes Singer/Songwriter album
- Metal & Wood - #14 - Billboard Heatseekers Chart
- "Running Around In My Dreams" - #1 iTunes Singer/Songwriter song
- "More" - #13 - AAA radio
- #1 record at KINK (Portland), WXRV (Boston) and KXLY (Spokane)
- Top 10 record at KTCZ (Minneapolis), WRLT (Nashville), WMMM (Madison), KRVB (Boise), KPTL (Des Moines), KWMT (Tuscon)
- Cover of Pollstar Magazine
- "Sink or Swim" - Promos for season premiere of "Grey's Anatomy"
- "Running Around In My Dreams" - End title for film "Something Borrowed"
- "More" - Promo for A&E's "Intervention"
- Over 50 placements in Film/TV, including "American Idol," "One Tree Hill," "Vampire Diaries," "Private Practice," "Rescue Me," "Ghost Whisperer," and "Cold Case"

To find out more about Tyrone Wells and listen to some of his music, visit www.tyronewells.com or "Like" him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/tyronewellsmusic.

Stay up to date with the latest information about Tyrone Wells coming to the National Lentil Festival!! "Like" us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LentilFest!

2012-01-31T12:57:00.001-08:00

Highlight your business at the National Lentil Festival Aug. 17th - 18th! The National Lentil Festival offers sponsorships from $100-$5,000 in almost all areas of the Festival including the Grand Parade, Wine Tasting & Poster Unveiling Event, 5K Fun Run, Lentil Cook-off and much more! Spots are filling up already, so if you are interested in highlighting your business in front of 26,000 festival goers, contact Festival Director Amberly Boone right away for full details.

2012-01-19T15:33:00.001-08:00

Save The Date! The 2012 National Lentil Festival Poster Unveiling and Wine vs. Brew Tasting featuring art by Jacqueline Daisley will be held on May 31, 2012 at 6pm at Palouse Falls Brewing Company! Be one of the first to see the 2012 National Lentil Festival poster!

New Lentil Fest Artist

2011-12-01T14:04:00.000-08:00

This Lentil Lady and the National Lentil Festival are proud to announce the winner of the 2012 Poster Art Contest! Jacqueline Daisley has been selected to provide the stunning art that will be on our 2012 National Lentil Festival Poster. This highly anticipated piece of art will be under wraps until next spring. We will display the art for the first time at our annual Poster Unveiling and Wine vs Brew Tasting, held at Palouse Falls Brewing Company.

Although it's hard to believe, it is time to start planning next year's festival. Making changes to provide a better experience for all is top priority for the next 9 months. Stay tuned for up and coming tidbits!

It's Poster Art Time!

2011-10-13T16:26:00.000-07:00

A call to artists!$1500. prize awarded to winning art. If you would like to submit art to be considered for the 2012 National Lentil Festival Poster, drop off your art to the Pullman Chamber of Commerce Office, 415 N Grand Ave before November 4th. Be sure to include your contact information.

Your art should look the way you would expect it to appear on the poster, but no need to worry about lettering. The graphic designer can handle that. The art the is selected becomes the property of the National Lentil Festival. All other art will be returned.
Good luck!

Lentil Fest is a Week Away!

2011-08-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

Hello Lentil Lovers (or is it Lentil Heads?) Just a week from Lentil Fest and things are moving quickly. Television personalities at Q6 will get to sample two of the finalists in the Legendary Lentil Cook-Off this Saturday, August 13. Be sure and tune in at 9:40 am. And let's see...fabulous entertainment is booked - check, great gobs of lentil chili will be made - check, the Lentil Express is warmed up and ready to lead a wonderful Grand Parade - check, Beer Garden is ready to pour - check. And Tase T. Lentil is ready to celebrate! A great weekend awaits... see you next week!

Six Finalists away from a Winner!

2011-07-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

The 2011 Preliminary Legendary Lentil Cook-Off was a success. Our wonderful volunteers prepared 50 lentil dishes to be tasted and scored by a panel of 25 judges. The top 6 finalists are in no particular order:

Mango Lentil Chili submitted by Cindie Hards of Jupiter, Florida
Caramel Lentil Brownies Sprinkled with Sea Salt submitted by Joni Hilton of Rocklin, CA
Bangali Dal submitted by Nipa Reza and Saeed Alam of Dielsdorf, Switzerland
Mediterranean Summer Lentil Salad submitted by Elizabeth Koseyan of North Hills, CA
Magical Mayan Salad submitted by Jane Bacher of Robertsdale, Alabama
Easy Campfire "Can Do" Lentil Chili submitted by Mary Louise Lever of Rome, Georgia

The competition was fierce, the judges took it seriously. Even our "I Hate Lentils!" judge, Bill Weed, was convinced that lentil dishes could be palatable. His choice for disguising the little legume was Lentil Love Sticky Toffee Pudding submitted by Helen Fields of Springtown, Texas.
Although he admits with enough chocolate, any lentil can be effectively hidden!

400 tastings of the top six recipes will be prepared and served to festival goers on August 20th. A grand prize of $1000 will be given to the favorite. Best wishes to all!

And the winner is......

2011-07-20T19:45:00.000-07:00

This Lentil Lady is psyched for the Legendary Lentil Cook-Off Prelim tomorrow! 118 great recipes were narrowed down to 50 by 3 of our local chefs. And thanks go out to our 50 wonderful volunteer cooks, some of whom I saw tonight at Dissmore's IGA, one of our Cook-Off sponsors, as they were picking up last minute ingredients. These top 50 recipes will be presented before 23 select judges for tasting tomorrow. These judges represent all things lentil including, Bill Weed, our official "I Hate Lentils!" judge. And I have to say the small pre-taste that we had today was fabulous! I can speak from experience that these judges will be hard pressed to make a decision tomorrow. May the best cook win!

A Record Breaking Cook-Off Year!

2011-07-10T15:04:00.000-07:00

This Lentil Lady has a bushel of thanks to offer everyone who entered the 2011 Legendary Lentil Cook-Off! 118 luscious lentil recipes have come in from 32 different states, up from 20 states last year! (But not all 50 --we will try again next year. Get with it Alaska!) I was pleased to see an entry from Red Lion, Pennsylvania come in. The lovely women I spoke to personally on the phone decided on a lentil salad. She had never cooked lentils before. Way to go! And I am humbled by another first - we got an entry from Switzerland! This was a round about way to get an entry. Seems this cook gets visits regularly from a local resident and has cooked our local Palouse lentils many times. (They receive them as gifts!) After some encouragement they entered this year and through the miracle of computers, they got the entry here by the deadline. I am told a 'snail mail' copy is on the way, complete with Swiss postage, just to be official. I plan to frame that entry!
So my heartfelt thanks go out to all who entered and I wish you the best of luck. These 118 entries will be narrowed down to 50, and those will be cooked and tasted on July 21st to narrow it down to 6. A difficult job indeed! Then the 6 will be prepared and presented for tasting to our Festival Goers on August 20th and we will have a winner! Whew! A National Lentil Festival Cook Book, with a fresh new look, will be available soon. Stay tuned...

Little Old Lady From Pa....

2011-06-26T20:01:00.001-07:00

This Lentil Lady had a chance to chat with a lovely little old lady - not from Pasadena but from Pennsylvania this past week. Seems she saw an article in their local paper about our Legendary Lentil Cook Off, and purchased some lentils a few weeks ago. This is the very first time she has ever cooked lentils, but she has been working up some recipes to enter into our contest. Her conversation with me was to try to narrow it down to the required limit of 1 recipe per person. Although I am not at liberty to sway an entrant one way or the other, our short phone visit reminded me that I had never even SEEN a lentil until I moved to Pullman, Washington 22 years ago. And I certainly had never cooked one, but since then I have experimented with many recipes. I have years of National Lentil Festival cookbooks at my disposal, so it's not hard to come up with a winner.
With only a week left to enter our cook-off, this Lentil Lady urges you to send in your recipes quick! After all I need the new recipes from this years cook book for my future endeavors!

We Need Your Lentil Recipes!

2011-06-20T14:14:00.001-07:00

The July 1st deadline for the National Lentil Festival Legendary Lentil Cook-Off is approaching, but it's not too late to try and win the $1000.00 grand prize! Our goal is to get entries from all 50 states and you can help. Know a great lentil recipe? Know someone who may know a great lentil recipe? Lentils are an amazing, nutritious ingredient to add to many dishes, including desserts! We even have an "I Hate Lentils" competition! Our judge, Bill Weed from KQQQ Radio, states firmly that he does NOT like lentils. He will taste any of the recipes where the lentil presence is not visible and name a winner! Points are deducted if this special judge can see, smell, feel or taste the lentils in the recipe. Lentils are simple to prepare and take on the flavors of whatever they are cooked with. Simply rinse to remove any debris, then boil 1 cup lentils in 2 1/5 cups water for 15-20 minutes. There is no need to soak lentils prior to cooking.
Cook-Off recipe's require 1 cup cooked or 1/2 cup raw lentils. Download an application and enter today at http://www.lentilfest.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Cook-Off-Application2.pdf

Poster Unveiled!

2011-06-13T19:57:00.000-07:00

What a fabulous event! This Lentil Lady was very impressed at the delicious food and drink that was presented by our local wineries, breweries and restaurants. And did the Barley Boys or Swirl Girls win? It was the Barley Boys, hands down with 57 votes for Palouse Falls Brewing Company and their Summer Whitman Wheat. Now I am not a beer drinker and have to say I personally voted for the wine, but it was a decisive win for the brews!

The food was another story. Winning by just a small margin was Gladish Commercial Kitchen with their Roast Beef Sliders. I understand a close second was the Summer Shrimp by South Fork Public House. With 10 different and fabulous appetizers, it's clear that next year will need more winners!

The Art of Pairing

2011-06-08T07:31:00.000-07:00

It's only a day away from the Poster Unveiling and Wine vs Brew Tasting. Guests will have a chance to taste specially prepared appetizers that pair well with a specific beverage. Wine AND beer provide a perfect sensory experience when matched with a food. Just after sampling the taste and aroma of an appetizer, slowly sip the beverage. The ideal combination is obtained when the taste notes harmonize and create an exciting NEW synergy. This elevates the pleasurable tastes of both. For instance, the dark, spicy red chili tastes are a perfect match to the rich red fruit and underlying spiciness of a deep red wine. A terrifically spicy/sweet experience! Are you ready? See you June 9th!

Tasting Tips for the Poster Unveiling

2011-05-31T19:23:00.000-07:00

You often see wines described with words like "spicy" or "floral" but this Lentil Lady wanted to know more of what those words really mean.

When you taste your wine, sip slowly. Savor the tingly feeling on your tongue. Inhale as you swallow to get the full effect. Then look for these flavor clues they often list on the back of the label. Descriptors like "vanilla" "butterscotch" "caramel" "smoke" or "nutmeg" indicates the wine has a woodier taste, often acheived by the the type of barrel it is aged in. If newer oak barrels were used in the winemaking process, the wines will often have a hint of vanilla in both the aroma and flavor.

Words like “zesty” “racy” “tangy” suggest a fresher, brighter style, more descriptive of the acidity and fruitiness of the wine.

Take a peek at the alcohol percentage and this will tip you off as to how heavy the wine will feel in your mouth. 10% should feel similar to water, 12-13% can feel like skim milk, 15% or higher will have the body of whole milk.

Stay tuned and we will look into the finer points of brews!

Don't Swallow in Utah!

2011-05-13T15:00:00.000-07:00

As things are heating up for the Poster Unveiling & Wine vs Brew Tasting, I thought a little wine tasting etiquette might be good. So after a little research, it was interesting to find that in Utah, wine used at wine tastings MUST NOT BE SWALLOWED! Which poses the problem, where exactly do you put it after some momentary swirling in your mouth. The idea of spitting it into your glass seems just a bit gross, even with rinsing. And I can't speak for you, but no way would this Lentil Lady spit into a bucket in front of people. How gauche!

So I plan to solve that for our guests on June 9th. Here in Pullman Washington it is legal to swallow. So simply rinse your glass, empty it into one of our lovely buckets and move on to the next.
Happy tasting!

Remember this!

2011-05-04T14:39:00.000-07:00

"In Wine there is Truth, in Beer there is Strength, in water there is Bacteria." A few fun tidbits to share over a glass:
Many years ago in England, pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim or handle of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to get service, resulting in today's phrase, "Wet you whistle".
We are getting ready for the first ever competition between wine and beer at the Poster Unveiling & Wine vs Brew Tasting, June 9th, 6-8pm at the Holiday Inn. This event, sponsored by Beasley Realty, is pitting our local wineries and breweries together to compete for a coveted trophy. Who will win? Barley Boys or Swirl Girls? Come and find out! 509-334-3565 for reservations.

75 varieties of lentils & they taste all the same...

2011-04-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

I've had this said to me a number of times and feel this is actually a benefit of our lovely little legume! Among one of the world's oldest cultivated foods, lentils have the unique property of taking on the flavor of what they are cooked with. This makes them extremely versatile! Which is why the processed food biz is looking at lentils to provide tasty, protein-filled snack chips and crackers. So be sure to add the spices and seasonings, garlic, onions, etc. to your lentils when cooking and you wil find the flavor to be as individual as the recipe!

Sorry for the technical difficulties!

2011-04-04T12:01:00.001-07:00

Whew! The Lentil Festival website is now fully functional. It was supposed to go live midnight April 1st, but Lentil Lady here was experiencing technical difficulties and it took a few hours more to sort out. If you see anything else I could fix on the website, drop me a line! Stay tuned for updates about our Poster Unveiling!

2011 National Lentil Festival

2011-03-30T16:13:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Feel Good Family Festival! The 2011 National Lentil Festival will be August 19-20, 2011 in Pullman Washington. A great line up of entertainment has been planned. New additions have been made to make our children's Lentil Land better than ever. Stay tuned for updates - as they happen! Lentil Fest! It will be here before you know it!

It's Lentil Time Again!

2010-06-01T12:25:00.001-07:00

It is time to start thinking about the Lentil Festival again. We are only a few months away from the August 20th kick-off to the 22nd Annual National Lentil Festival so here is a little bit about what we have been up to at lentil central.

Thursday, May 28th at ourAnnual Poster Unveiling and Wine Tasting David Hoyt, the artist, presented our beatiful poster to a full crowd at the BellTower Event Venue. This years poster features many elements of the Palouse countryside highlighting lentils in the foreground. For more information about the artist and to purchase the poster visit our website at: http://www.lentilfest.com/. This year we also have commemorative postcards, notecards, and t-shirts. Visit the Pullman Chamber or our website www.lentilfest.com/shop to view these new items.

Let's talk about the famous Lentil Cook-off. It is time to submit your entries to this year's cook-off. Last year we had submissions from 38 states and our goal for this year is all 50! Submit your recipe to be entered into the contest and to make it into our 2010 Lentil Festival Cookbook. To submit your delicious lentil-recipe visit: www.lentilfest.com/join-us/contest-applications/. Submissions are due July 2nd.

Registration is now open for all other events as well. If you want to get your blood pumping this August, be sure to register for the Tase T. Lentil 5k run, the 100K Tour de Lentil Bike Ride, or one of the other events.

Now the Lentil Festival is quite a large event, and we are always in need of volunteers. If you are interested in helping with this years festival please call the Pullman Chamber: 509.334.3565 or visit our website to sign-up.

So much to say...

2010-04-28T11:16:00.000-07:00

The National Lentil Festival is August 20-22 this year but we have been working on it since last October. Here's a quick update on what's going on this year:

-We are finished selling sponsorships because it is almost time to unveil this year's poster! This year's poster will feature local artist David Hoyt who most recently did the artwork for the Pullman Civic Trust trailhead signs.

-The new Lentil Festival site will launch on Monday! Check it out at www.LentilFest.com

-This year's microbrew tasting tent will feature our three local microbrewers: Palouse Falls Brewing, Paradise Creek Brewery, and Riverport Brewing.

-Vendor apps pouring in, get yours in today!

More updates soon, contact us now for tickets to the Poster Unveiling & Wine Tasting!

Overdue Report

2009-10-01T13:31:00.000-07:00

My goodness, the last post was almost two months ago. I am terrible at this blogging thing. Well the Festival was wonderful, pictures posted on our website at www.lentilfest.com.

Despite being a down year for the economy sponsorship was still up. We added a third day to the Festival with a new golf tournament and expanded the beer garden. We used all new bands this year that received rave reviews and the Kid's Area renovation was very popular. Attendance was just as high as last year despite the very warm temperatures and the parade lasted well over an hour with nearly 100 entries. The Festival went green with more biodegradable containers and a new park & ride system as well as "green" merchandise and additional recycling options. All in all, a fantastic time.

Plans are already under way for next year and several new ideas have been added to the list. Send us your thoughts, we are open to anything.

Want to know what is going on with Pullman when we aren't lentiling? Every month I will post a new list of my 10 things to do in Pullman for under $10. Check back soon for the October list!

Top 6--Lentil Festival on a roll!!

2009-08-04T11:36:00.000-07:00

The National Lentil Festival Lengendary Lentil Cook Off took place last Thursday, July 30. We had a room full of hungry judges, eager to try new and different lentil recipes. After the oo's and ahh's, we have come up with our top 6 recipes. They are:

B-L-T Dip, submitted by Janice Elder of Charlotte, NC
Herbed Lentils and Rice, submitted by Betty Fulmer of Greenacres, WA
Savannah’s Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters, submitted by Jane Harrison Ashworth of The Woodlands, TX
Not Your Mother’s Jelly Roll, submitted by Wilma Page of Richland, WA
Rhubarb Lentil Crisp, submitted by Julie Schneider of Pullman, WA
Maple Chipotle Barbecue Lentil Pizza, submitted by Viviane Levine of Summerfield, FL

The winner of the I Hate Lentils category was:

Animal Cracker Dip (Fudgy Chocolate Frosting), submitted by Connie McKeen of Milton, WA

These top 6 recipes will be judged by 400 festival goers on Saturday at 2pm.

Each of the recipes at the cook off were incredible. A HUGE thank you goes out to all of our recipe submitters.

We are now sliding head first into the last stretch of festival preparation. Saturday vendor spots are all filled up. We have extended the deadline for Friday vendors until Friday, August 7. Parade applications are also still available, and will be until August 14.

We are extremely excited about this amazing event and cannot wait to show you all how it is even better than ever!

Top 50 have been found!

2009-07-15T10:22:00.000-07:00

We received the prescreening judging sheets, counted up the votes, and found our top 50 recipes for the 2009 Lentil Festival!!! In no particular order, here they are:

Smoky Lentil & Spinach Quesadillas with Chipotle Avacado Cream
Savory Lentil Pancakes with Ginger Tomato Chutney
Mediterranean Lentil Lamb Burger
Lentil Cocktail Cups
Lively Lentil Salad with Thai Flavors
"Lentil" Havana Lettuce Cups
Lentil Ravioli with Spinach and Cheese
Lentil Salad with Peas, Arugula and Tomatoes
Lentil Fritter Snacks
Quick and Easy Lentil Joes
African Stew
Pumpkin Lentil Soup
Rainbow Lentil Tacos
Super Duper Lentil Burgers
B-L-T Dip
Lentil-Rice Burritos
Indian-Style Lentils and Basmati Rice with Warm Cilantro Oil
Red USA Lentils and Spinach Chicken
Cilantro Chicken Jack & Lentil Quesadillas
Not Your Mother's Jelly Roll
Herbed Lentils and Rice
Jewel Lentil Salad
Lentil Lemon Linguini
Savannah's Sweet Potato Lentil Fritters
Legendary Lentil Samosas with Cilantro Mint Chutney
Summer Sweet Lentil Salad
Lentadillas
Lentil Sliders
Twice Baked Pineapple Lentil Enchiladas
Rhubarb Lentil Crisp
Spicy Lentil Sloppy Joes
Lentil Enchilada Casserole
Maple Chipotle Barbecue Lentil Pizza
Balinese Garden Peanutty Lentil Soup
Mystical Mediterranean Lentil Salsa with Pita Chips
Cherry Right-Side Up Cake
Fresh-Mex Lentil Wontons with Zesty Cilantro-Lime Dip
Lentilicious Pumpkin-Cranberry Scones
Creamed Goat Cheese Sweet & Sour Lentil Bruschetta
Summertime Stuffed Sweet Onions
Mediterranean Lentil Salad
Lentil and Yam Chimichangas
Turtle Cheese Wedges
Sweetey Pie
Animal Cracker Dip (Fudgy Chocolate Frosting)
Bacon Wrapped Lentil Stuffed Mushrooms
Lentil Hummus
Bombay Tacos with Mango-Yogurt Sauce
Carrot Pineapple Lentil Bread
Bowl Me Over Italian Lentil Soup

We are looking forward to tasting all of these fantastic recipes on the 30th of June! Once the recipes have been made, a group of judges will decide who gets to move on to the top 6! It will be a tough decision to make. The top 6 recipes will be featured at the Lentil Festival on Saturday in Reaney Park. The first 400 festival-goers will get to help judge these amazing recipes! Come hungry!!!

Full steam ahead!

2009-07-09T12:10:00.001-07:00

Pullman's 4th of July celebration went incredibly well. Not as many were in attendance this year, but we are blaming that on the scorching heat. It was a gorgeous day on the Palouse. The fireworks were fantastic! Thank you to all of you that came out to support the event! We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Now that the fireworks have been lit, its time for the Chamber to get going...full steam ahead! The Lentil Festival is just 43 days away! The cook off applications have all been turned in and are ready to be prescreened so we can find our top 50! This year, we had some technical difficulties with our new online forms, so we ended up with 93 qualifying recipies this year, which was a bit shy of the 125 submitted last year. Those 93 recipes came from 30 different states, which is absolutely fantastic! We are still hoping to reach our goal of getting a recipe from each state in the future.

All of the recipes submitted will be prescreened by a few select judges. These judges will narrow our recipes down to the top 50. Those 50 will be the recipes entered in the Lengendary Lentil Cook Off!! We are all very anxious to see who makes the cut!

Vendor, contest and parade applications are still available online if anyone is interested. We are hopeful that this year's Lentil Festival will be bigger and better than ever!!

4th of July week

2009-06-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

This week, the Chamber is gearing up for our big 4th of July celebration! We are hoping to get tons of last minute donations in our donation jars around town to help with fireworks, and if anyone is interested in volunteering at the park, call the Chamber! (334-3565). We still have plenty of volunteer spots to fill.

The celebration will start at 5pm on the 4th with a BBQ and inflatable toys. Music will begin at 5:30 with the Pullman Community Band. They will be followed by Dan Maher at 6:30, and the Kingpins at 7:30. Once dusk hits, fireworks will light up the sky! There will be no personal fireworks allowed at the park. There will also be no animals or alcohol allowed.

If you would like to join in our fun, come to Sunnyside park on July 4th at 5pm for a fantastic evening! Park and ride lots will be available throughout Pullman and there will be plenty of signs up to show you where to go. For more information on this awesome celebration, call, email, or visit the Chamber! You can also listen to Hit Radio 104.3 for our 4th of July information spot! Hope to see you there!

Beany Greeny

2009-06-22T10:53:00.000-07:00

This year, the National Lentil Festival is in the process of going green! Our new Lentil Festival water bottles are BPA-free stainless steel bottles that will be available for purchase at the Chamber or at the festival. For those that purchase a water bottle, a cool water refilling station will be available. This will help cut down on plastic water bottle usage.

To save paper, all applications for the event will be available online. Additionally, all communication between vendors and contestants will be done via email.

Avista's mascot, Wattson the Energy Dog, will treat the kids to some 'green' entertainment in the kid's area. He will be teaching kids about the importance of conserving power and alternative energy sources.

Outside the festival, we will be attempting to reduce carbon emissions by putting up more bike racks for those that would like to ride instead of drive. We will also have park and rides around town with buses running to and from the festival in attempts to cut down on traffic, pollution, and any parking problems.

Recycling bins will be placed around the festival near garbage cans and biodegradable bowls and spoons will be used for the cook off.

We are officially stepping into our big girl pants, trying to save our environment..one chili bowl at a time. We would appreciate your help and support in our green attempts.

The New Lentil Lady

2009-06-09T12:05:00.001-07:00

Hello there! My name is Allyson Rohde and I am the new intern at the Pullman Chamber of Commerce. Things have gone extremely well for my first few weeks at the Chamber, and I am so excited to be working with such an amazing group of ladies!

At the moment, the chamber office is working on putting together another great 4th of July celebration. We have set donations jars around town to help raise money for fireworks, and we will soon be calling around for volunteers. It will be a fantastic 4th of July this year, I can feel it!

The Lentil Festival plans are also coming along. Our 2009 poster has been very popular so far. I can't wait to see everything come together for the big event. And, if you hadn't heard, the festival will be 3 days long this year! We have a golf tournament that will take place on Monday, August 23rd at the new Palouse Ridge golf course. There is also talk of a rugby tournament joining on! I will keep you updated on that.

On Wednesday, June 10, Pullman's very own Farmer's Market will grace the streets of Pullman once again. This will be our 4th farmer's market (I believe). Each week keeps getting better and better with more vendors, more people, and live music. The energy has been high, and we would love to keep it that way! Come check it out every Wednesday from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. in the Old Post Office parking lot!

If you can STAND any more excitement, Mary Barstow is now Mary MacDonald! Congratulations to Mary and her new hubby!

Lentil Fest Poster Unveiling

2009-05-29T11:04:00.000-07:00

Last night was our annual Lentil Festival poster unveiling. It was held at the Old Post Office Wine Gallery. A nice crowd showed up to taste local wines and get the first look at our 2009 poster, created by local artist, Matthew Leiker. A special thanks to Matthew and all of our sponsors.

Signed posters, tshirts, and other Lentil Festival 'gear' will be available at the Pullman Chamber office.

We are very excited about the new design for this year and hope that everyone else enjoys it as well!

Just a quick reminder: if you are interested in entering a cook off recipe for a chance to win our grand prize of $1000, go to our website at www.lentilfest.com and enter your recipe! The deadline is July 3. We hope to see you all at the Lentil Festival August 21-23!!

100 Days and Counting...

2009-05-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

Today is my one-year anniversary of working here at the Pullman Chamber of Commerce and it is officially 100 days until the National Lentil Festival. All of the sponsors are on board, the poster has been printed and is ready to be unveiled May 28, vendor applications are pouring in, and the merchandise has all been ordered. Our Little Lentil King and Queen have chosen the parades they will attend with the Lentil Express this year. If you would like to see the Lentil Express, we will be attending the following parades:

Rosalia Battle Days in Rosalia, WA: June 6
Slippery Gulcch Days in Tekoa, WA: June 20
Johnson Parade in Johnson, WA: July 4
Albion Parade in Albion, WA: July 4
Potlatch Community Days: July 18
National Lentil Festival Parade: August 22
Paul Bunyan Days in St. Maries, ID: September 5
Palouse Days Festival in Palouse, WA: September 19
University of Idaho Homecoming in Moscow, ID: October 31

I am feeling strangely ahead of schedule but I'm sure that feeling will pass. Fortunately we have a crack team here at the office and on our Lentil Festival Committee! We recently hired an Events Intern for the summer and are pleased to have Allyson join our team on Monday. This is a Festival that really does take a village to put together. We have representation from almost every industry in the community. This means more sources of new, creative ideas for the festival for you! If you are interested in volunteering for the Festival or helping out on the Committee in any way, please email director@lentilfest.com. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 14 at the Pullman Chamber Office.

Lentil of the Month Club!

2009-04-23T15:07:00.000-07:00

If anyone is fortunate enough to know what a lentil is, the most likely know one variety. "Lentils are those brown flat pea-things" is a common reply to the question "What is a lentil?" In reality, there are several varieties of lentils, each with different cooking characteristics, tastes, colors, and growth patterns but all very good for the soil and good for you!

In an effort to educate people about the many types of lentils, we have started a Lentil of the Month Club. Each month club members will receive a new variety of lentils or lentil products that are grown right here on the Palouse. In addition to a new type of lentils, you will receive an exclusive recipe to try and additional fun facts about lentils and the Palouse. See our website for how you can become our next member!

Well Under Way

2009-04-20T12:07:00.000-07:00

The National Lentil Festival is 123 short days away. This quickly diminishing number fills me with both fear and excitement. It also means that here at the Lentil Festival office we are deep in preparation mode. Our Lentil Festival Committee has been hard at work planning new, exciting things to do for this year's festival. One of the biggest changes will be a new "I Hate Lentils" Category in the 16th annual National Lentil Festival Legendary Lentil Cook-off.

Every year people from across the country (37 states in 2008) submit their favorite lentil recipes for this cook-off. While we have received many delicious recipes including lentil-stuffed mushrooms, colorful lentil salads, and lentil spice cake and brownies, some people still refuse to try these award-winning recipes for the simple fact that they contain lentils. This new category will offer a special prize to the chef who creates the recipe that has the best aroma, texture, appearance, and taste but has cleverly hidden lentils. Good luck to all our chefs! All recipes are due June 3, more details on our website.

Sponsor Support UP Even During Hard Times

2009-04-07T10:05:00.000-07:00

I have been reading reports from Festivals and Events all over the State of Washington and the Pacific Northwest about how terrible the economy is and how difficult it is to find sponsor money. SeaFair, a major summer festival in Seattle, is down 15% and similar reports are coming in from across the country.

This is just not the case in Pullman. Maybe it is because Pullman took the economy hit later than most and maybe it is because we are a smaller Festival that doesn't require as much funding but I genuinely believe that it is because Pullman cares about this Festival and will do whatever they can to make sure that their business helps contribute to the biggest party in town. No matter how you slice it, the National Lentil Festival has INCREASED cash sponsorship by 10%, not including added support from the City of Pullman, and In-Kind sponsorship has INCREASED 40%! A tremendous jump in any economy.

Thank you to all our generous sponsors of the 2009 Festival. We promise to have a good show for you.
National Corporate Sponsors: Avista Utilities, Beasley Realty, City of Pullman, Coca-Cola Company, Dissmore's IGA, Inland Cellular, Inland Northwest Broadcasting, James Toyota, Old Post Office Wine Cellar & Gallery, Palouse Ridge Golf Club, Time Warner Cable, USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council, Washington State University, and Whitman Senior Living.
Tase T. Lentil Club Sponsors: Bank of America, Border 104/KQQQ, Daily Grind Espresso, Northwest Public Radio, Pullman Disposal Service, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, and Sun Rental Center.

Wanted: Intern!

2009-03-25T09:34:00.000-07:00

The National Lentil Festival is looking for an intern for the summer starting June 1. This internship provides one student with an experience unlike any other. The person hired for this position will help coordinate every aspect of Pullman's 4th of July Celebration and the National Lentil Festival during their three months with the Pullman Chamber of Commerce. This will include recording radio PSAs, maintaining databases, writing articles for our website and local newspapers, coordinate and manage volunteers, and help oversee both events.

The position is paid, $9/hour, not to exceed $2,250 for the duration of the internship and will require 20 hours of work per week plus 35-40 event hours from June 1 to August 28. For a full description, please click here or see our website at www.pullmanchamber.com.

Extra Day to Play!

2009-03-16T15:05:00.000-07:00

The National Lentil Festival is proud to announce that it is now a three day Festival!

Pullman, WA is proud to host this annual event the weekend before classes start at WSU. With the help of the brand new Palouse Ridge Golf Club we have been able to expand the festival to Sunday to include the first ever National Lentil Festival Golf Tournament. More details coming soon but put this on your calendar for August 21-23, 2009 in Pullman, WA!

National Lentil Festival

2009-03-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the official National Lentil Festival blog!

The National Lentil Festival is held the weekend before classes start for Washington State University in the fall. This year it will be August 21-22. The event includes:

Friday Night Street Fair:
World's Largest Bowl of Chili: we give away 300 gallons of free lentil chili within about an hour
Children's Area: including inflatable games, free cotton candy and much more!
Beer & Wine Garden: with a wide selection of microbrews and regional wines, sponsored by the Old Post Office Wine Cellar, for those over 21
Free Concert Stage: sposored by Inland Cellular, with music from your favorite Northwest Artists

Saturday, August 22:
Grand Parade: sponsored by Time Warner Cable, starts at 11:00am and runs through downtown Pullman
5K: Open to runners and walkers, this short race is a great way to see the town
100K: Tour the Palouse Hills on this non-competitive ride through Whitman County
Little Lentil King & Queen Coronation: Children entering grades 2-5 can try out for this
Kid's Area: including a science tent, juggling school, arts and crafts, and stage acts
Lentil Cook-off Judging: sponsored by the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council, allows you to vote for your favorite of our winning 6 lentil submissions
Free Concert Stage: with more great music in the park!

And much more! Check out our website for complete details! www.lentilfest.com