
New Capital Hotel Executive Chef Joel Antunes prepares Coconut Soup with Crab Dumplings at last night’s Governor’s Culinary Challenge.
It’s a crazy week leading up to Saturday’s Food Blogger Bake Sale! Here’s what I’m juggling this week (more photos when I get a chance to sit):
• I was on the Alice Stewart Show this morning talking about the bake sale, as well as the American Culinary Federation Central Region conference happening right now in Little Rock and the culinary/hospitality school at Pulaski Tech. I’ll post the link if they make an online one I can share. I’ll be on Daybreak this Thursday at (gak) 6:20 a.m. demonstrating a Cooking Matters recipe and talking about the sale, and I’ll be on First News with Bob Steel on KARN Friday morning at 7:10 a.m.
• The aforementioned ACF Central Region conference is going on this week at the Statehouse Convention Center, which is nerd nirvana for those of us in the industry (even those of us not in restaurant kitchens). I got to introduce my dear friend Dr. Meenakshi Budhraja for her panel, “The Other White Coat,” about how chefs and doctors can work together to fight chronic disease. Today, I’ll hit the trade show for a spiffy new chef coat (and hopefully some freebies — looking at you, Plugra) and attend an afternoon session on Gluten-Free Cooking.
• As part of the conference, last night was the Governor’s Culinary Challenge at the Capital Hotel. Attendees (including top-notch chefs from around the region) got to taste the very best Little Rock has to offer, by local chefs including Donnie Ferneau, Lee Richardson and newcomer Joël Antunes (Capital’s new executive chef). More photos and details on that later today.
• It’s not too late to bake or plan to come to the bake sale! Just email me.
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