COMMENTARY
Curbside cuisine for a good cause
8/28/2016Food For Thought, which is dedicated to providing nutritious food to those in need through mobile food pantries and a picnic held downtown each Saturday morning, invites you to the newest event in its Dine Thoughtfully series of fund-raisers: Eat in the Street.
From 6:30 to 9 p.m. Sept. 22, celebrate the Uptown District at an outdoor dinner being held between 14th and 16th streets along Adams Street. Guests will enjoy five courses prepared by some of Toledo’s most notable chefs — Ho Chan Jang of Balance Pan-Asian Grille, Dan Muszynski of All Crumbs Bakery, Ian Regent of Manhattan’s Pub ‘N Cheer, and the husband-wife team of Tracy Plumb-Ruiz of Chef Tracy 419 and Andrew Ruiz of Chef Ruiz on the Go — who will use seasonal ingredients from local farms, including Jaime Minche’s Friendship Farms in Waterville.
Only 100 seats are available for this premier dining event, which is limited to those who are 21 years of age and older. Tickets cost $80 for dinner only and $100 for dinner plus three drink tickets. Because Eat in the Street will be held under tents, the show will go on rain or shine.
For more information, contact Food for Thought at 419-972-0022. To buy tickets, go to givlet.org/donate/fGzf.
LifeLine’s 9th anniversary dinner
LifeLine Toledo, which strives to build bonds among people to help alleviate poverty in the inner city, will celebrate the 9th anniversary of its monthly community dinners beginning at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 3. The event is held open house-style throughout the evening and features abundant food (grilled items, vegetarian fare, comfort food classics, and baked goods).
Hosted at the home of pastor Steve North and his wife Lyn at 2040 Collingwood Blvd., the LifeLine dinner is a fixture that has continued despite bad winters, changes of venue, and even the Norths having suffered two house fires in recent years. Open mic time, hosted by Jim Fahey, will be supplemented with special celebratory musical performances throughout the evening.
There is no charge for the dinner. For more information, go to facebook.com/events/654240188064793.
OSU student wins Beard scholarship
Katarina Dranchak of Beavercreek, OH, has been awarded a prestigious $20,000 scholarship from the James Beard Foundation. In this, the inaugural year of the JBF National Scholars Program, students from 10 regions across the country were selected. Ms. Dranchak is a freshman at The Ohio State University and plans to become a dietitian.
Kris Moon, vice president of the James Beard Foundation, said: “A desire to pursue a career in the culinary arts is no longer limited to cooking in the kitchen .... The National Scholars Program supports a diverse group of students exploring virtually every educational discipline, whether that be history, anthropology, economics, management, or the sciences — as viewed through the lens of food.”
For more information about the JBF National Scholars Program and the James Beard Foundation Scholarship Program, go to jamesbeard.org/education-scholarships-and-grants.
Cookbooks galore
Once again, it’s time to take inventory of new cookbooks that have been sent for review: Bread Illustrated: A Step-By-Step Guide to Achieving Bakery-Quality Results at Home by America’s Test Kitchen, A Sherry and a Little Plate of Tapas by Kay Plunkett-Hogge, The Raglan Road Cookbook: Inside America’s Favorite Irish Pub by Kevin Dundon, Forks Over Knives Family: Every Parent’s Guide to Raising Healthy, Happy Kids on a Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet by Alona Pulde and Matthew Lederman, Simple: Effortless Food, Big Flavors by Diana Henry, Palestine on a Plate: Memories from My Mother’s Kitchen by Joudie Kalla, and The Hungry Fan’s Game Day Cookbook: 165 Recipes for Eating, Drinking, and Watching Sports by Daina Falk.