Grannies: Get An Apple Application

Got a grandma that’s the apple of your eye? Safeway and the Washington Apple Commission are looking for an on-the-go grandmother “whose lifestyle personifies the healthful attributes of Washington state’s famous Granny Smith apples.”

Nominees should “be sweet to the core and have good moral fiber,” “stem from a solid family tree” and “have beauty that’s more than skin deep, with just the right amount of maturity.”

The winner from our region will join 14 other finalists from around the country at Wenatchee’s annual Apple Blossom Festival in May. One will be chosen to appear on supermarket posters and travel the nation to promote healthy eating.

Look for entry forms at Safeway stores, or send your nomination (in 100 words or less) and a nonreturnable photo to: Granny Smith, 203 Bellevue Way NE, Suite 502, Bellevue, WA 98004. Deadline is April 5.

Ver-mein?

The two-week Chinese New Year celebration started on Monday, kicking off 4694, the Year of the Rat (a particularly pleasant image for a food column).

During the festivities, Chinese cooks typically serve combination dishes of vegetables, meat and fish, representing family unity. Mandarins and honey oranges are eaten because they’re said to bring sweetness in the year ahead. People don’t finish all the food on their plates, so no ghosts will go hungry and to symbolize abundance for the future.

For free, authentic Chinese recipes from the Lee Kum Kee sauce company (none, fortunately, for rodents), send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: LKK-CNY, 304 South Date Avenue, Alahambra, CA 91803.

Tuber tour

February also is National Potato Month, and while you probably know that Idaho is the top spud-producing state in the nation, you may not realize that Washington is No. 2.

For a free brochure, “World Class Potato Recipes,” featuring potato preparations from Hungary to Peru, send a stamped, self-addressed, business-sized envelope to: Washington State Potato Commission, 108 Interlake Road, Moses Lake, WA 98837.

Chew toys?

If you think supermarket shelves keep getting more crowded all the time, you’re right.

According to New Product News magazine, 22,752 new food and drug entries hit the market last year. The biggest increases, percentage-wise, compared to 1995: tobacco products (up 168 percent) and pet products (up 153 percent).

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Drawing