Events

Speed Meeting the LDNY Way!

Our first successful round table networking event took place at DeGustibus at Macy’s Great Cook Kitchen on Tuesday February19, 2008.

Arlene and Meryle dish!

A total of 20 New York Dames attended this event including six new members highlighted below. It’s amazing what tidbits you find out from members in just over four minutes. A hearty thanks to donations by Cooking by the Book and Cornerstone Communications. A lovely reception was hosted once we were done “working” the room.

• Jackie Mills has a Masters in Food Science and develops recipes for Weight Watchers – her helpful hint – don’t gain more than three pounds. It will keep your weight down. Also her husband is a chef here in Manhattan.
  
• Joan Bloom has been in PR for over 20 years. Her current clients include House of Blues and Showboat on the boardwalk. Everyone is invited to visit The Red Door Spa located directly on the beach.
  
• Mary Cleaver was one of the first catering companies to promote and use sustainable agriculture. She is currently trying to develop more corporate clientele, but truly enjoys working with the fundraisers.
  
• Carol Prager recently published a booking on baking. She provided us with a great new quote: “Connecting the dots is not a given.” Thus, hosting events like this truly helps to educate the membership.
  
• Joyce O’Neill is a chef at Cooking by the Book, but she was previously a stylist at Bergdorf Goodman and Henri Bendel! She is in charge of our next Dames who Drink!
• Anne McBride – Anne is Swiss-French and highly recommends Astor Wines and Spirits to discover those delicious Swiss white wines. She loves working in archives and currently works at NYU where she has a degree in Food Studies.
  

It was a great kick off to the new year and a wonderful idea to get to know our new members. See you next year.

Zona Rosa: "OLE for the Annual Holiday Party"

By Nora Favelukes

Deborah Mintcheff, Emily Snyder, Marissa May toast the holidays.

On November 10, Les Dames d’Escoffier celebrated the end of the year at Zona Rosa, an upscale Mexican Restaurant in Midtown Manhattan. Over sixty four Dames enjoyed the cocktail hour and the “Nuevo Mexicano” three course dinner prepared by Chef Adrian Leon, a disciple of Doug Rodriguez, the doyen of “Nuevo Latino Cuisine” in America.

At that time, we had the opportunity to taste some very interesting wines: a Torrontes from Alta Vista, a Bonarda from Nieto Senetiner (both from Argentina) and a lively Prosecco from Lunetta (Italy).

The festive ambiance, the quality of the service, food and wines and the interesting company made for a very enjoyable evening.

In his own words:

America’s idea of Mexican food & culture has been mostly limited to burritos, fajitas and happy hour margaritas. While some great strides have been accomplished in the last 15 years, in particular since the advent of Nuevo Latino wave, unfortunately this long standing misconception of refried beans and extra cheese has kept our truly rich and dynamic history in a suffocating little box.

Mexican heritage encompasses centuries of sophisticated development and complexly intricate culture. Our food expresses an understanding & respect for tradition and the wonderful bounties that abound us.

Zona Rosa offers all the wonderful flavors and authenticity of regional Mexican cuisine with a modern and savvy attention to presentation as well as a delectable awakening of the taste buds.

The ingredients and cooking methods are the same that keep me going back time and again to my grandmother’s table in Mexico City, but the dishes are truly my own. The tastes, details and visual stimulation reflect the last thirteen years I have spent in New York City kitchens, catering to an always appreciative and courteous palate.

“Nuevo Mexicano” is simply the authentic, richly flavorful food of my beloved country, prepared and served in the greatest city in the world, New York.

Adrian Leon
Executive Chef, Zona Rosa

Abbondanza: Honoring Dame Lidia Bastianich

Please click above for more information about "Abbondanza"

Les Dames d’Escoffier – NY Chapter at NY Grows 2007

Les Dames d’Escoffier – NY Chapter participated for the second year at NY Grows 2007 (a National Gardening Association event), which took place on April 28th at Union Square Market in New York City.

As part of our Green Tables program, Dames were featured as culinary experts on specific subjects including nutrition, diabetes, catering, and wine, while other Dames demonstrated cooking techniques and created delicious and colorful foods for eager-to-taste passersby. NY Grows 2007 was a day full of exciting activities, and a way for Dames to come together and share ideas about our organization and our Green Tables initiative.

A wonderful feature to our program this year was a Barnes & Noble special cookbook display featuring signed copies of books authored by members of Les Dames d’Escoffier-New York. Thank you Barnes & Noble (Union Square location) for supporting our cookbook authors.

Our program also featured Robert Patterson of the UN-Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and The Growing Connection. Throughout the day, Robert demonstrated the EarthBox, a container planting system that teaches kids and their families how to grow their own food. The program is already in places like Africa, Central and South America, and 12 States and over 120 Cities in the US. Our goal in sponsoring The Growing Connection is to help stop world hunger and educate everyone, especially those less fortunate, about the importance of proper nutrition. For more information go to http://www.thegrowingconnection.org.

Our heartfelt thanks go to presenters, volunteers, and committee members for helping us to create a successful event: Christine Ansbacher, Alison Awerbuch, Hilary Baum, Myra Clement, Claire Criscuolo (Committee), Daphne Derven (Committee), Melanie Dubberley (Committee), Lynn Fredericks (LDEI GT Chair), Betty Fussell, Lila Gault, Rozanne Gold, Aliza Green (PA Chapter), Carol Guber, Joanne Hayes, Sue Hoffman, Dana Jacobi, Katie Lee Joel (Committee), Jackie Ehlert Mercer, Katherine Newell Smith (DC Chapter), Marsha Palanci, Maureen Petrosky, Emily Snyder, Alice Axenfield-Storm (Committee), Jeanne Voltz (Committee), Connie Welch, and Lee Wooding (Board Liaison).

A very special thanks also goes to Dame Suzen O’Rourke for donating beautiful, new LDE-NY aprons in time for our event. These with our new LDE-NY banners were created to support our on-going efforts for brand recognition.

Thank you all very much,

Corinne Trang and Georgia Chan Downard
(2006-2007 LDE-NY Green Tables Co-Chairs)

Green Tables Shines at Union Square

What a wonderful day for LDENY and Green Tables to be out in the sunshine in Union Square Park on Saturday, April 28, 2007.

Corrine Trang and banners

Sunshine flowers and eager crowds made it the perfect venue to highlight our purpose and promote our Green Tables Initiative. Corinne Trang worked tirelessly with Co-Chair Georgia Downard and Board Liaison Lee Wooding, to put together a remarkable day with cooking and Earthbox demos.

Claire Criscuolo demos yummy bruschetta and ricotta snacks

A big thanks to Dames who demonstrated their prowress including Jackie Ehlert Mercer, Dana Jacobi, Joanne Hayes, Rozanne Gold and Claire Criscuolo, Alison Awerbuch, Carol Guber, Maureen Petrosky, and Philadelphia Dame Aliza Green.

Barnes and Nobles Book Display of Les Dames

Many fellow Dames volunteered (Jeanne Voltz, Christine Ansbacher, Lila Gault, Sue Hoffman, Myra Clement, Emily Snyder, Marsha Palanci, Betty Fussell, Polly Talbot, Katherine Newell Smith, and Connie Welch) to man the information booth and a most impressive display of Dame Cookbooks were featured on the third floor of Barnes and Nobles on W 16th that further highlighted our talented members. Thank you also Suzen O’Rourke for donating the new and beautiful LDENY aprons. Our volunteers wore them proudly.

Contain Garden Demo with children

The children were most impressed with the Earthbox Demo that was taught by Robert Patterson from the UN Food and Agricultural Organzation (FAO)- The Growing Connection, a container garden system set up in various places around the world including the US, Africa, and South America, for example. For more information visit The Growing Connection.

Nutrtion, taste, and living “green” were highlighted throughout the day.

Many thanks to all those involved and looking forward to year three in 2008!

Red wine with milk? Chocolate that is. Really.

Clay Gordon

Clay Gordon, President of pureorigin, editor and publisher of chocophile.com and author of the forthcoming book "Discover Chocolate" led a tasting of wine and chocolate pairings at Harriet Lembeck's Wine and Spirits School.

Moderator Dame Shirley Alpert

Yummy chocolate!

Malbec and Milk? One of the surprisingly wonderful pairings was of a Cuvelier Los Andes Coleccion Malbec 2004 with a Felchlin Maracaibo Grand Cru 38% cacao Swiss milk chocolate. The cooked caramel taste of the chocolate beautifully complemented (and tamed) the chewy, tannic nature of the Malbec.

Hostess Dame Harriet Lembeck

Dames Beth Allen and Polly Talbott

A Riesling, Domdechant Werner Hochheimer Kirchenstck Riesling Auslese 2003, paired with a Cru Hacieda organic dark 74% cacao Swiss chocolate was met with ouuhhhs and ahhhs from the discriminating crowd.

Take the chocolate quiz?

TRUE or FALSE

1.The darker the chocolate, the better the chocolate.
2. Chocolate is a good cough suppressant.
3. Never feed dogs chocolate.
4. A ___ oz piece of chocolate has less caffeine than a cup of coffee.

Quiz answers:

1. False. There is no direct correlation between the color of a chocolate and the quality. There is also no correlation between color and the amount of antioxidants present in chocolate.
2. True. The theobromine in chocolate is a more effective cough suppressant than codeine and it's not classified as a class one narcotic so you can buy it over the counter.
3. True. Our canine friends are highly sensitive to the theobromine in chocolate. Ingestion can cause canine chocolate toxicosis, which may lead to death.
4.A one-ounce piece of solid dark chocolate has less caffeine that a cup of decaf coffee.

Thomas Reale and Hanna Lee

The New York Chapter of Les Dames D’Escoffier hosted their annual holiday party this year which featured a wine tasting and tango at the Consulate General’s Office of Argentina on December 13, 2006. More than 50 Les Dames members and their guests enjoyed a fine selection of Malbec wines from the Mendoza region that were donated by Wines of Argentina, as well as Argentinean finger foods catered by Buenos Aires Restaurant, including savory beef empanadas. The evening included two enchanting Tango shows performed by Thomas Reale, a world-renowned Tango instructor, and his protégée, Hanna Lee, a Les Dames member and President of Hanna Lee Communications, Inc. and founder of Unwind with Wine.