Be in the audience for the Cook of the Week Challenge cookoff

After heated rounds of recipe competitions, four suburban cooks have advanced to the finals of the Daily Herald's Cook of the Week Challenge, and you can be in the audience as one of them is named Cook of the Year.

Lori Motyka of West Chicago, Christine Murphy of Palatine, Dan Rich of Elgin and Lori Wiktorek of Aurora will compete against each other in a live cook-off before 400 audience members on Wednesday, Oct. 30, at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg. They will have one hour to prepare a dish using mystery ingredients unveiled that night and present it to a panel of judges that includes last year's winner, Michael Pennisi of Carpentersville. The winner will be named Daily Herald Cook of the Year 2013 and receive a prize package worth more than $2,200.

Tickets to the cook-off cost $20 and include one drink, cooking demonstrations and a goody bag.

Participants also have an opportunity to win prizes in a raffle, with ticket sales benefiting the Northern Illinois Food Bank. An array of cooking paraphernalia, Elton John tickets, cooking classes, cookbooks and gift certificates are in the prize pool.

Get tickets at http://events.dailyherald.com.