On July 23, 2010, the PlantMasters Flower Farm, 22617 Griffith Drive, Laytonsville, Maryland, will become the hub for a lavish five-course, seated dinner for 75 people. The dinner will feature wine pairings, specialty hors d’oeuvres and fine cuisine from renowned chefs, including Steven Lukis of Wildfire, Gregg Greenberg of RSVP Catering, Stefano Frigerio of the Copper Pot Food Company, and Patricia Jinich from the Mexican Cultural Institute. Each will provide his signature dish for dinner guests to enjoy.
The hosts, Leon and Carol Carrier, will conduct tours of their gardens. There will be music, door prizes (one is a cooking class with former White House Executive Mess Chef Charlie Redden), and a cooking demonstration with Nadereh Naderi, the cookbook author of Simply Persian Cuisine.
Most of the food provided will be supplied by the Olney Farmers and Artists Market farmers and food vendors, including some select local sources. Dinner wines will include a fine selection of wines from the Rodney Strong Vineyards, Sonoma, California.
There will be three featured speakers. Food Writer Renee Catacalos, and Author Joe David, Gourmet Getaways, 50 Top Spots to Cook and Learn, will talk briefly to the guests about the art of eating well and healthy; and Robert Larsen, a representative from Rodney Strong Vineyards, will answer questions about the wine and talk to the guests about the art of successfully pairing wine and food.
All profits from this fundraiser will go to the Olney Farmers and Artists Market, Olney, and it will be used for maintaining its service to the community.
For more information, please contact:
Joe David
540-428-3175
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Five-course dinner with wine $75; $130 couple
Non-refundable (rain or shine)
Limited seating
To purchase tickets, visit:
www.olneyfarmersmarket.org
Menu
Hors d’oeuvres
Erick Gilbert of Erick Gilbert’s Kosher Buzz
RSVP Catering of Fairfax, Virginia
Mini knish hors d’oeuvres compliments Erick Gilbert;
An assortment of hors d’oeuvres, compliments RSVP
(sausages, cheeses, and more.
Served with a 2009 Charlotte’s Home Sauvignon Blanc
From the Rodney Strong Vineyards
Salad
Chef Patricia Jinich
Official Chef of the Mexican Cultural Institute
Beet, Orange and Jicama and Caramelized Pecan salad
Served with a 2009 Charlotte’s Home Sauvignon Blanc
From the Rodney Strong Vineyards
Pasta
Chef Stefano Frigerio
The Copper Pot Food Company
Pasta filled with in-season vegetables
The wine will be
From the Rodney Strong Vineyards
Entrée
Chef Steven Lukis
Wildfire Restaurant, Tyson’s Corner, Virginia
Herb-roasted chicken (Fox Hollow Farm chickens)
with summer harvest mushrooms and vegetable ragout
with chive-scented mashed potatoes.
Served with a 2009 Rodney Strong Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
From The Rodney Strong Vineyards
Desserts
Georgetown Cupcake
Olney Farmers and Artist Market Vendors
Gourmet Cupcakes Compliments of Georgetown Cupcake
A spread of sweets Compliments of the Olney Farmers Market vendors
To be served with Spring Water, Tea, and Coffee
Vegetarian Foods will be available if requested in advance
Fixed price: $75 per person; $130 per couple (including gratuity and tax)
Principals
Renee Catacalos works with consumers and businesses along the sustainable and local food supply chain as the principal of Farm to Table Communications. A former publisher of Edible Chesapeake magazine, she currently serves as Community Building Coordinator for Future Harvest-Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture. Catacalos is on the boards of FRESHFARM Markets in Washington, DC and the Riverdale Park Farmers Market in Riverdale, MD, the steering committee for Buy Fresh Buy Local Chesapeake Region, and she is a member of the Prince George's County Agricultural Preservation Work Group, Slow Food USA, and Les Dames d'Escoffier. A native Washingtonian, she has written about food and restaurants for a number of local and national publications including the Washington Post newspaper, Black Enterprise, and Farming magazines, www.farmtotablecommunications.com
Joe David has traveled the globe in search of the perfect meal for decades. To support his food habit, he has taught school; worked in public relations, marketing, and magazine advertising; authored countless articles (many on food and international cooking schools) and five books. His recent articles include an interview with the celebrated chef Jacques Pépin and a piece on the Ritz Escoffier Cooking School in Paris for U.S. Airways magazine. His food articles have appeared in such publications as Christian Science Monitor, Chile Pepper, Family, Hemispheres, and Go magazines. He currently is on the board of Farm Wineries Council of Virginia, and the author of Gourmet Getaways, 50 Top Spots to Learn and Cook.
Georgetown Cupcake was founded by Katherine Kallinis and Sophie LaMontagne who traded careers in fashion and private equity to pursue something a little sweeter – their passion for artful cupcakes. They cater for special events of all sizes in the Washington, DC area. Both are lifelong bakers, inspired by their grandmothers. In February 2008, they left their former careers and opened DC’s first and only cupcakery. Katherine and Sophie will finish off the meal with some all-American gourmet cupcakes, which will be served with a pastry buffet prepared by the farmers market vendors. www.georgetowncupcake.com
Stefano Frigerio attended the Centro Di Formazione Professionale Alberghieo in Lecco, Italy. Upon graduation, he held positions in several of Milan’s most distinguished kitchens, first at the luxury 4-Star, Relais Le Fattorie di Sthendal; then as Chef de Partie at Ristorante San Maurizio, and finally as Chef de Partie Entrementier at the acclaimed Don Carlos Restaurant in the luxury 5-Star Grand Hotel et de Milan. In 1998, he joined acclaimed Chef Fabio Trabocchi to open Grissini Restaurant in London’s 5-star Hyatt Carlton Tower. Later the two chefs opened a second restaurant, Floriana. His last position in London before heading to the United States was as Executive Chef of Ibla Ristorante. He was lured to the States by his old friend Chef Fabio Trabocchi to help lead the kitchen at Maestro Restaurant in McLean, Virginia as Senior Sous Chef. During his tenure at Maestro, the restaurant received its share of accolades and awards. For the sake of his family, he has taken a temporary break from the 16-hour work day and has started the Copper Pot Food Company. www.copperpotfoodco.com
Patricia Jinich, is a cooking teacher, food writer and Official Chef of the Mexican Cultural Institute who was born and reared in Mexico City. After she moved to DC, she continued the formal path she had begun in Mexico as a political analyst, and she earned her master’s degree in Latin American Studies. After graduating, she worked at the policy research center, the Inter American Dialogue. Obsessed with food rather than politics, she left her job to pursue her passion: to research, write, cook and teach about Mexican food and culture. In 2007, she launched “Mexican Table”, an ongoing series of cooking demonstrations and tasting dinners at the Mexican Cultural Institute. Jinich has appeared on the Food Network, Fox News, CBS and The Splendid Table, and has been featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Examiner. She has also taught programs for the Smithsonian Associates and the Meridian International Center. As a food writer, her articles have appeared in The Washington Post and NPR’s Kitchen Window. For the dinner, she will provide the salad course. www.patismexicantable.com (her blog address)
Executive Chef Steven Lukis heads the kitchen at Wildfire restaurant in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia, a national steak and chophouse that provides diners with the aura of a 1940’s dinner club. Before settling into a career with Wildfire, Lukis worked with noted Chicago chefs Rick Tramonto and Gale Gand at Brasserie T, where he learned their special approach to creating robust and unfussy blends of Italian/French/American food. Prior to Brasserie T, which he managed for the two famous chefs,Lukis had pursued a career track that took him through some of the top restaurants in the country, beginning with the Astor Place restaurant in the boutique Hotel Astor, Miami Beach, FL. Lukis received his culinary arts degree from Johnson and Wales University-Miami. www.wildfirerestaurant.com
The Olney Farmers and Artists Market is the brainchild of Olney resident Janet Terry who was inspired to form the market after visiting the Farmers Market in Charleston, South Carolina. Her vision to bring quality farm foods directly to the Olney market was presented to GOCA (Greater Olney Civic Association) in July 2007 and has become reality since then. www.olneyfarmersmarket.org
Rodney Strong Vineyards was founded in 1959 in Sonoma County, California, by the late Rodney Strong, a former dancer on the Paris and Broadway stages. After retiring from dancing, Strong moved to California where he became a pioneer in Sonoma County’s modern wine industry. One of the first to recognize the potential of this rustic farmland area, Strong helped transform it into one of America’s finest wine-growing regions. To many, because of his early efforts, he is considered a visionary for recognizing the value of Sonoma’s soil and climate for producing world-class wine.
In the wine industry, where place and character matter, a truly special place is essential for growing grapes with character. Next in importance is the winemaking process. Rodney Strong approaches this with gentle handling and careful use of barrel and stainless steel fermentation and oak aging, allowing the grapes to express their intrinsic character.
Today, the winery owns and farms 14 estate vineyards in Sonoma County's prime grape-growing land including Alexander Valley, Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast. The winery continues to win critical acclaim for its Estate, Reserve and Vineyard Designated wines. www.rodneystrong.com
Other Contributors
Atwater’s Bread of Maryland, which will supply freshly made bread with certified organic flours, stone-ground by Lindley Mills (www.atwaters.biz); Erick Gilbert of Erick Gilbert’s Kosher Buzz who will prepare mini knish hors d’oeuvres; (www.foodservicerewards.org/profile/ErickGilbert); and RSVP Catering of Fairfax, Virginia, which will supply an assortment of their favorite hors d’oeuvres (www.rsvpcatering.com). RSVP Catering is Washington area’s sixth largest caterer, setting the standard for elegant, innovative social and corporate entertaining.
