Three Four Things to Eat, Drink, and Bake This Weekend

Caramelpalooza is tonight in the Smeeks parking lot at 7 p.m. sharp. Again, that's TONIGHT! Yours truly will be there judging all 18 (hopefully) delicious treats and you should probably show up, too, because there is going to be a ton of caramel and it's free. And that's all I...

By Shannon Armour

March 2, 2012

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Caramelpalooza is tonight in the Smeeks parking lot at 7 p.m. sharp. Again, that's TONIGHT! Yours truly will be there judging all 18 (hopefully) delicious treats and you should probably show up, too, because there is going to be a ton of caramel and it's free.

And that's all I have to say about that (but you can click here if you would like to know more).

After you have recovered from your Friday night sugar high, check out the rest of this weekend's offerings.

Eat This: BBQ Samples at the Surprise Barbecue Festival -- Baseball, barbecue, bands, beer - sounds like a pretty awesome Saturday afternoon if you ask us. Make the trek out west tomorrow for the Surprise Spring Training BBQ Festival at the Surprise Recreation Center from 11 a.m to 7 p.m. Thirty barbecue teams will compete for a grand total of $10,000 in cash with their chicken, brisket, ribs, and pork - and you get to sample as much as your barbecue lovin' heart desires (as long you can keep shelling out the $2 per sample).

Alongside the BBQ, you'll be able to take in three different college baseball games, live music from local bands The Sugar Thieves and the Bottoms Up Blues Bands from St. Louis, Missouri, a whiskey tasting, cold beers, live cooking demos, and more. Admission is $10 per person; whiskey tent is an additional $10 per person. Barbecue samples will be priced at $2 each. Adult beverages, soda, and water will also be available for purchase. Tickets available at the gate.

Drink This: 24 Four Ounce Beer Samples at the Great Arizona Beer Festival -- What was that? You want to torture your liver again? Beer week wasn't enough? That's what we thought you said. Good thing the 24th Annual Arizona Beer Festival is this Saturday at Tempe Beach Park from 2 til 6 p.m.

More then 50 breweries will be bringing over 250 different beers to the park for your enjoyment. We're excited to snag another taste of Mother Road Brewing's Lost Highway Black IPA and maybe we'll even sneak in a sample of Squatter's double IPA , Hop Rising (it's 9% AVB). Tickets will be available at the gate for $50 per person. 21+ only!

Bake This: Veggie Chips -- After a full weekend of caramel, barbecued meats, and copious amounts of beer, we're not baking anything -- except maybe a batch of homemade veggie chips. Slice up a few root veggies, toss them in a little olive oil, season with a dash of salt, then stick 'em in the oven. A perfect Sunday snack after a long weekend of eating and drinking.

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