Family recipes are so much more than scraps of paper; they're a pact to keep the past alive and share it with generations to come.

Nothing can compare to the sights, sounds and sense memories of rolling out biscuit dough with Grandma or helping Uncle Pete stir the Sunday gravy. However, those stained, handwritten index cards and notes folded in between pages of tattered-spined cookbooks ensure that those sacred flavors won't be lost to the ages.

We'd like you to celebrate your family's unique culinary heritage and honor your loved ones by sharing their best dishes with the world.

Your assignment: Scan or photograph a handwritten, heirloom family recipe (the more stained and well-loved-looking, the better) and upload it via iReport, along with a story about the person who brought it into your life and a memory of enjoying it with relatives or friends. A picture of the finished dish is nice but not required.

We'll showcase our favorites right here on a regular basis, and you'll bask in the warm, happy glow of the knowledge that you made your Grandma (or great-uncle, or second cousin on your mother's side) a superstar and preserved their kitchen legacy.

iReport – Share your heirloom recipes

5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

For 28 years, the Food & Wine classic has drawn food fans from around the globe to Aspen, Colorado for a long weekend of seminars, tastings, hobnobbing with celebrity chefs and, well, a few parties. Okay, a lot of parties.

We asked the editors of Food & Wine Magazine - all longtime veterans of the event - to share their most special moments and top tips for surviving a long weekend of the good life.

And we're out here in Aspen along with them. Follow Tweets from Eatocracy and our managing editor and it'll be just like you were there. (Minus the hangover.)

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Previously: Steven Stern's ode to eating alone at the bar

Tips for best bar eating

Find a good spot

If you're next to the place where the waitstaff picks up drinks, they're going to be squeezing by you all night. If you're all the way at the end of the bar, the barkeep is going to have to do a lot of walking back and forth to take care of you. Choose somewhere central, and settle in.

Start with a drink

Sure, you can ask for the wine or cocktail list, but if you sit down and immediately order something – a beer, a Campari and soda, a club soda if you don't do alcohol – the bartender knows they're dealing with someone decisive.
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Every weekday, we're highlighting a local or regional blogger we think you ought to know about. We can’t be everywhere at once, so we look to these passionate eaters, cooks and writers to keep us tapped into every facet of the food world. Consider this a way to get to know a blog’s taste buds, because, well, you should.

Meet today's featured bloggers and blog:
Who: Victor Panichkul and Charles Price, The Taste of Oregon
Where: Salem, Oregon
Twitter: @SiamHanuman

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Welcome to New York City. Hope you packed your appetite.

We're not claiming these are the definitive "best," "most essential" or "most authentic" restaurants in all of NYC, or any of that jazz. We are just saying that if it were us in town for a few days, these are the places we'd make a beeline for to eat, drink and generally be delighted.

Not a fan of our faves? Well, OK, then. Just send us a DM or a note @eatocracy on Twitter, let us know where you are, and we'll find some food to suit your mood.

Have a delicious stay.

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Eatocracy is your online home for smart, passionate conversation and information about food news, politics, culture. We'll highlight regional and family recipes, dive into restaurants and food shopping, chat with celebrity and local chefs, and show you what's for dinner around the world tonight. Grab a place at the table and read with your mouth full.

Sometimes my friends are a little shocked, a little concerned maybe, when they find out how much time I spends sitting at bars by myself. Perhaps they imagine I'm just tossing back whiskey, crying into my drink, singing along to the jukebox. Well, sometimes, yes, I am doing precisely that. Most of the time, though, I am eating. I love eating alone at bars.

I eat at bars that serve food and restaurants that have bars. I eat shepherd's pie in Irish pubs and beef cheek ravioli in fancy Italian joints. I seek out odd little local spots in cities I'm visiting, looking for the perfect cup of gumbo, some regional burger variation I've never encountered before. I stroll into high-end restaurants that are booked up for the months and get wonderful meals without waiting.
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Sink your teeth into today's top stories from around the globe.

• There's a hummus among us, though it may be flavored. Sales of the refrigerated spread increased more than 18 percent in the last year. - New York Times

• The Gulf oil spill continues its wrath on local restaurateurs. The price paid for shrimp has increased almost 25 percent, and oyster prices have almost doubled. –  MSNBC

• Nothing makes Russ Parsons feel like a 'dad' more than spending weekend mornings in the kitchen. - L.A. Times

• Dutch brewers Bavaria sent 36 mini-skirted ladies to the World Cup for a publicity stunt. Now, their ambush marketing tactics face legal action. - BBC

• Spain has Ferran Adrià. Britain has Jamie Oliver. The rock star chef has gone global. - TIME