New Canaan Cares readies for kitchen home tour

New Canaan Cares is gearing up for its 21st annual Kitchen and Home Tour, an event which annually draws more than 500 participants. This year's tour will be held on Thursday, May 9, from 10 to 3, and will feature seven renovated kitchens and homes in New Canaan, as well as a multi-vendor boutique on location at one of the homes. As always, gourmet boxed lunches (made by Rosie) will also be available for advance purchase.Tour homes typically represent the state-of-the-art in quality construction and design.The homes selected thus far trend toward clean, modern lines, open floor plans and bright, airy design, all of which maximize family living spaces. If you are contemplating a renovation or new construction project, this is an excellent opportunity to examine the work of local architects, builders and designers. "Even if you don't have a project in mind, it's a great social occasion to attend with friends just for fun," according to a release.
As Cares' largest fund-raiser, the tour is vital to its mission of advancing the health and well-being of youth and families. In fact, 100% of tour proceeds directly support youth, family and community programs.Various patron level tickets are also available for purchase, and automatically enters the purchaser into a drawing for a special tour parking pass, spring dress jacket by local designer Skirtin' Around, two complimentary, gourmet boxed lunch tickets, or a $30 certificate to the tour boutique. These tickets are also delivered two weeks prior to regular tickets, giving patron ticket-holders a sneak peek at the homes on the tour."As a nonprofit organization, we absolutely depend on this event to help support our programming objectives," Doreen Conley, board president, said.
This past year, the organization impacted more than 2,200 youth and more than 2,400 parents with more than 100 programs. Programs encompass three core areas: health promotion, parenting skills and leadership training, and are delivered through classroom instruction, after-school workshops, and youth and adult group presentations. All programs are offered free of charge to the community.For instance, take the basic meatloaf and make it meatball-style. Change up the bread crumbs to seasoned ones. Buy them or make our own with the oregano, garlic and onion powders in the kitchen cabinet. Add chopped fresh basil or a spoonful of pesto sauce or canned tomatoes in place of the water or stock. Pack half the meat into the loaf pan, line the center with mozzarella, top with the other half. Then nap it with your favorite tomato sauce halfway through baking.