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When Pleasure Meets Purpose
May 2006
On Tuesday, May 2nd, I attended an annual event that brings some of
the finest chefs in Fairfield County together in one very large
ballroom, all cooking up a sampling of their specialties for an
appreciative audience. Many towns and villages have their own taste
of….. but this event is part of a national organization, Share Our
Strength, or SOS, dedicated to feeding the hungry. And yes, even in
wealthy Fairfield County, there are hungry people. I think, even
in--or especially in--a land of plenty, pockets of scarcity are like
a vacuum waiting to be filled. And fill them we do. Each year we
raise tens of thousands of dollars--a wonderful side benefit for an
evening that is nothing short of pure pleasure.
The pleasure is felt immediately upon entering the ballroom, at the
Italian Center in Stamford, big enough to hold up to 600 people.
It’s in the air, circulating between guests and chefs, old friends
and new embracing in greetings, in snippets of conversations and
laughter heard through the noise of the crowd. It’s evident in every
morsel tasted, from the fried oysters, to the succulent, spicy
shrimp, to the melt in your mouth roasted pork or the cool, creamy
gelato, and on and on until one can taste no more. The evening is
devoted to simple pleasures.
I couldn’t help but notice as I breezed around the room---enjoying
the freedom of not having my own station this year and instead
contributing behind the scenes--how easily fun mixes with function.
How effectively, everyone wins. Chefs get to promote their
restaurants, sommeliers their wines, guests their indulgences and
all the while money is raised for a worthy cause.
Imagine, for a moment, if we could apply this thinking--share our
strength--to our every day lives. What vacuums could we fill? Could
tears be dried with a warm embrace? Could pain be eased by the
willingness of a friend to listen? Could stress be calmed by
laughter? Could fear by erased by love? Could these things be done
with the ease that hunger is sated by a plateful of food?
We all have a plateful of strengths we can share every day. And in
the sharing we find our riches. With a feast it’s possible to banish
famine. I encourage everyone to hold this thought and maybe just
maybe it can travel beyond the boundaries of Fairfield County to
places near and far and spread the pleasures of our bounty.
Chef Silvia
This month in
recipes, you’ll find a small sample of what was cooked
up at the Taste of the Nation, from just a few of my very talented
friends.
Also, if any of you are interested in organizing you own style of cooking
class/dinner party, check out my
cooking classes page for more information.
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Chef Silvia's Monthly Newsletter!
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