Fancy Pants Foodie

Foodie news, reviews and how-tos from Arkansas and beyond.

Local Chefs Get Down in the Streets for “Let’s Move” Campaign

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Ever wonder what happens when you feed central Arkansas chefs at night?

Just kidding. But they can get pretty crazy.

This video is of a recent event by the Central Arkansas Chapter of the American Culinary Federation (read: chef professional association). Led by Chefs Suzanne Campbell and Cynthia Malik on behalf of the ACF’s Chef and Child Foundation, this group held a public event in the Argenta area of North Little Rock promoting real food, exercise and culinary arts. The Foundation aims to bring chefs into schools and communities to help fight obesity and malnutrition.

Watch and enjoy, and let me know in the comments if your school or organization would be interested in a chef-led educational event. No promises, but between myself and this group of folks, we may be able to work something up!

Daybreak Chocolate Cake for Food Blogger Bake Sale

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Eggless Chocolate Cake I made on Daybreak. Or maybe a gluten-free version I made the night before. Not telling.

Eggless Chocolate Cake I made on Daybreak. Or maybe one I made the night before. Not telling.

I’ll be on Daybreak (KATV Ch. 7 in Little Rock) tomorrow morning talking about the Arkansas Food Blogger Bake Sale. So exciting! (EDIT: It was great! Here’s the link to the segment.)

If, by chance, it’s that appearance that brought you here, then I guess I didn’t burn the place down or splatter chocolate all over the hosts. And maybe you’d like the recipe for that eggless chocolate cake from the Cooking Matters workbook. If so, please find it below, with the directions re-written a bit for my own blog voice purposes.

This Saturday is the Arkansas Food Blogger Bake Sale, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., to be held at 7th and Main in North Little Rock, alongside the Argenta Certified Arkansas Farmers’ Market. Every dime you spend will go to the No Kid Hungry campaign of Share Our Strength, which funds a bunch of really awesome, effective programs to fight childhood hunger. One of those programs is Cooking Matters, of which I am a chef instructor. (There’s also a nutritionist at each class, and we tag-team hunger into the corner, yo.)

Bloggers all over the country are participating in the Food Blogger Bake Sale on the same day! This is kind of exciting because of the whole synergy thing, but also because we’re a bit competitive. In the two years we’ve already done this sale in Arkansas, we’ve beat several larger markets. Not that it matters. But it does. You know what I mean.

If you want to learn more about No Kid Hungry programs in Arkansas, check out the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, which administers all NKH programs in our state. If you’d like to host a Cooking Matters six-week course, or even find one near you to attend, they’ll be able to help. Same with their breakfast, after school and summer feeding programs.

So come see us! Buy lots of goodies, and let us keep the change. It all goes to help fight childhood hunger.

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Chocolate Cake (From Cooking Matters workbook)
Serves 16, 1 2-inch square piece per serving
Prep time: 15 minutes • Cook time: 30-40 minutes

  • 1 1/2 c. AP flour
  • 3/4 c. dark brown sugar
  • 1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 c. canola oil
  • 1 T. vinegar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 c. cold water
  • Nonstick cooking spray

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Use a whisk to break up the sugar and blend thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, mix the applesauce, oil, vinegar, vanilla and water. (I used an ice cube in my tepid tap water to chill it a bit; just make sure it’s exactly a cup after the ice melts or you take it out.)

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined, and do not overmix. Don’t freak out if the batter seems thin.

Bake in the middle of your oven until the center is firm and a toothpick comes out clean, about 30-40 minutes.

If you like, garnish with powdered sugar, vanilla yogurt and/or fresh fruit.

NOTE: This recipe is useful for vegans, those watching cholesterol, or if you just simply ran out of eggs and want some cake. The oil is also reduced and replaced with the applesauce. Many of our WWII-era family members may have made something similar when eggs and oil were rationed. The vinegar acts as a catalyst for volume, making up for the lost protein of the egg.

Feeding Arkansas’ Hungry Kids, One Celeb Chef at a Time (No Kid Hungry Little Rock Dinner 2012)

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Lovely table settings by Share Our Strength staff and volunteers.

Tuesday night, Governor Mike Beebe told a sold-out crowd at the Oxford American headquarters that Arkansas has become a success “poster child” for the No Kid Hungry program of Share Our Strength, the nonprofit group working to end childhood hunger in America by 2015. And based on the results of the event, raising over $30 thousand with a night of spectacular culinary achievement, I am not at all surprised.

The local chef rock stars who cooked for the event included Jeffrey Owen of the Capitol Hotel, Brian Deloney of Maddie’s Place, Kelli Marks of Sweet Love and a host of rising-star culinarians and other volunteers. The out-of-towners included two Top Chef graduates: John Currence of City Grocery in Oxford, Miss. (Top Chef Masters, season 3) and Marcel Vigneron of Modern Global Tasting Inc. in Los Angeles (Top Chef, season 2).

Share Our Strength is holding other No Kid Hungry Dinners across the country to raise funds for their worthy programs, including the Cooking Matters program I had the privilege to teach this summer. The secondary purpose, however, is to create a buzz, getting folks together who love to cook, love to eat and love to make sure our kids have the opportunity to do both.

Behind the scenes was an absolute hoot. The best thing about being one of those up-and-coming culinary types is being able to schlep into these things as extra hands, learning from everyone there. I was able to help plate dishes, wipe other dishes down (the rental company didn’t send them all clean!), even deliver dishes to the waiting crowd of about 120 guests.

I absolutely loved watching the chefs prepare their dishes. Each chef, from the locals to the guest chefs, had something extraordinary to offer. As I watched Vigneron finish his plates of pea soup with peas, salmon, beets, beet ice cream and a beet chip, I was astounded by the level of mastery. And, honestly, at that point in the evening I hadn’t even realized why he looked so darn familiar! (I’ll tell you this: His jerk persona on Top Chef was all editing. He’s a doll.)

The other chefs all brought their own passions, as well. Currence was especially passionate about the Cooking Matters program, telling me about the Chefs Move to Schools kickoff event he helped cook for at the White House earlier this year. He said it was essential that we work to get kids excited about healthy cooking, just as previous generations of kids were the family catalysts for litter control and recycling.

Our own local chefs created amazing dishes, as well. Owen’s cocktail-hour appetizers reflected the precision and depth of flavor that embodies the Capitol Hotel. Deloney presented the first course, a “muffaletta” napoleon of heirloom tomatoes, showcasing the beauty of fresh, seasonal ingredients. Newcomer Kelli Marks astounded the seasoned veterans with her light, perfectly balanced cheesecakes. (Vigneron loved them.) And without credit on the program, former Argenta Market chef Shane Henderson, now with Ben E. Keith, prepared beautiful vegetarian entrees on the fly for those who requested them.

Before the event even got rolling, the former-PR-person in me had to go work the crowd during cocktail hour. Turns out I walked by just as P. Allen Smith was walking in, as he was one of the guest speakers for the event. Bless his heart, the awesome ladies who came in from Share Our Strength in Washington, D.C. didn’t know who he was! I helped them all alleviate the situation without anybody getting embarrassed. My reward: Soiree and the Dem-Gaz snapping photos of me with said Mr. Smith. The white coat, they love it, even if I’m a nobody.

I may write a separate post about just hanging out with these awesome folks all evening. It’s a story unto itself. But, for now, enjoy these photos knowing that we’re this much closer to No Kid Hungry in Arkansas.

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Cooking — Why it Matters (Share Our Strength/No Kid Hungry event July 31)

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For the past month, I’ve traveled over to the Arkansas Foodbank every Friday afternoon to teach a super-awesome group of folks how to cook.

The program is called Cooking Matters, a program of Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign. The goal is to help lower-income families learn to shop, cook and eat in a way that is affordable and healthy.

As is often the case with such things, I think I’ve gotten more out of it than the students have. But that’s not to say they aren’t learning, too. Each week, several participants have a “eureka” moment when they realize they like brown rice, they like the taste of foods with less salt, or they actually enjoy broccoli.

Cooking Matters is fairly new in Arkansas, only having had a few classes over the past two years as they geared up through the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance. Mine is the first to use the “Families” curriculum, meaning we have kids and adults cooking and learning together. Now, local coordinators are seeking out new locations and instructors to place classes all over the state.

Each week, we get settled into our “kitchen” (some classes are taught in an actual kitchen, while others, like this one, are done in a meeting room) and begin with a lesson from a nutritionist. (Last week’s demonstrated the amount of fat in a fast-food meal by putting equivalent amounts of Crisco on a bun. Several haven’t had fast food since!) Then, we review topics such as knife skills, food safety or the like, and then we go over the recipe for the day.

Then it gets crazy! The room buzzes with the happy madness of several families cooking at once. I demonstrate each step from my station, and then sometimes walk around to help the students complete it. When we’re done, we all gather together at a large table, demonstrating the importance of eating together as a family. Here, we try each others’ dishes, talk about the lesson, laugh, learn from each others’ lives. Then I close with a challenge for the next week, such as choosing healthy ingredients or limiting fast food.

I’m writing this now to tell you how you can help. I’ve seen firsthand how lives are changed. Not only do I hope the program becomes funded for expansion, I want you to feel the happiness of knowing you’ve changed lives for the better — with cooking.

On Tuesday, July 31, Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign is holding a fundraiser event at The Oxford American that is a must-attend. The funds will stay in the state to fund Cooking Matters, as well as to help increase participation in existing programs such as WIC, SNAP and summer feeding programs. (For more info on why, read this; many hungry Arkansas kids don’t take advantage of the help that’s available.)

I seriously hope you’ll take action today to make sure you’ll be there. Tickets are $150 each, with table sponsorships available for $1,500. Ask your employer to participate, especially if you’re in the food industry.

The No Kid Hungry Dinner will be hosted by Chef Donnie Ferneau (Rocket 21) and will showcase the talents of some of Little Rock’s best chefs, including Brian DeLoney (Maddie’s Place) and Kelli Marks (Sweet Love), as well as visiting chefs John Currence (City Grocery, Oxford, MS) and Marcel Vigneron (Modern Global Tasting Inc., Los Angeles, CA).

You can buy tickets online or get more information about the event here.

P.S. Chef Donnie Ferneau has approved my schlepping in the kitchen for the event, so I’ll be live-blogging (or after-the-fact blogging, depending on how busy he keeps me) the whole thing, from the perspective of the chefs! Stay tuned.