We were recently invited to join FohBoh, the new on-line networking community for culinary professionals, and happily jumped on board. Founder Michael Atkinson posted our latest recruitment announcement on their homepage blog - a huge boon for our June trip. The most recent comments made us smile…

At 12:40pm on Apr 15th, 2008, Jim said…

Thanks for highlighting the CulinaryCorps and its mission, which is more important than ever. I recently spotted a news reference to the organization (although I cannot recall where…) and briefly browsed their site. Your post prompts me to learn more about their invaluable work.

From the perspective an epi-curious resident of Planet Earth, I’ve rarely seen such a beautiful convergence of meaning: food, culture and culinary collaboration all happening in a unfamiliar community context in which everyone learns and grows. Brilliant!

At 6:39pm on Apr 15th, 2008, Diane said…

Sounds like a fabulous way to combine education with charity and still get out of town for a whole new perspective. There’s nothing like going someplace else to help other people you don’t even know, even for a short while. This kind of thing opens our eyes and broadens perspective.

Ruth Reichl, editor-in-chief of Gourmet Magazine, helped our recruiting efforts in her weekly e-newsletter, The Gourmet Weekly. Proudly displaying flats of luscious LA strawberries, CulinaryCorps alumni Summer and Danielle were our photogenic ambassadors. Take a peek at the shout-out here.

Anyone who has been to New Orleans between March and June knows that “boil” takes on a whole new meaning. The June trip will find us having our own private crawfish boil at the historic House on Bayou Road with the help of Slow Food rising-star Poppy Tooker and featuring the Bayou beauties from the nets of Joey Fonseca of Des Allmandes Seafood. To prep for the event, we thought a short lesson on crawfish technique would be useful. Chowhound does a good job demonstrating the “speed” method but rest assured, they are as many ways to devour a crawfish as there are backyard boils in Spring.

CulinaryCorps has been invited to present at this year’s Taste 3 Conference in Napa Valley, CA - an honor that roughly marks the first year anniversary of our inaugural trip. We are excited to break bread with inspirational culinary visionaries while spreading the good works of our CulinaryCorps alumni. For more information on Robert Mondavi’s brainchild at the intersection of wine, food and art, go to www.taste3.com.

CulinaryCorps invites eligible culinary students and professionals to join our fifth volunteer outreach trip to New Orleans, LA and MS Gulf Coast from June 1-6, 2008.

Currently, a team of twelve cooks, culinary students and food professionals is being selected to volunteer their time and kitchen skills to food-related community projects invaluable to the area’s rebuilding efforts. Beyond our service activities, participants will be immersed in the vital culinary culture of the region. Each trip aims to provide both cultural exchange and service opportunities to cooks who believe that good food can lead to great change.

If you are a student, alumni or culinary professional who would like to transform your passion for food into an opportunity to provide support and solidarity, please apply today!

WHEN: June 1-6, 2008

WHERE: New Orleans, Louisiana and MS Gulf Coast

COST: $300 (students) $375 (professionals) + Airfare (Includes: projects, most meals, most events, activities, housing (in the Xavier University Dorms) and transport in New Orleans. It is recommended that each participant brings at least $200 spending money)

REQUIREMENTS: Min. 3 months professional kitchen experience and/or culinary degree. Personal health insurance. Commitment to volunteer expectations.

HOW DOES IT WORK: Each day, CulinaryCorps lends their manpower and enthusiasm to a specific project partner. Tentative projects include: Cooking in the Camp Hope Kitchen, Habitat for Humanity’s Volunteer Housing, Headlining the Slow Food Strawberry Festival Fundraiser in Ocean Springs, MS, working with the Edible Schoolyard New Orleans and preparing lunch alongside the students of Cafe Reconcile. Volunteers will also have the opportunity to learn about the culinary heritage of the city through classes, lectures and tours. The most recent trips have had participants creating over 1,200 healthy meals for the residents of the recovering 9th Ward, surveying over 200 market patrons and creating healthy, balanced and seasonal meals with 40 children from the Samuel Green Charter School. For further specifics of the trip, please contact culinarycorps@gmail.com

TO APPLY: Fill out the 2008-june-culinarycorps-application.doc and return it to culinarycorps@gmail.com. Your application will be reviewed in a timely fashion and if selected, you will be asked to submit a $150 non-refundable deposit to secure your spot. A participant packet with the full itinerary will be e-mailed to you three weeks before the trip.

THESE SLOTS FILL UP QUICKLY…APPLY TODAY.

Please click on the following link to complete the 2008-june-culinarycorps-application.doc

Please send all completed applications to culinarycorps@gmail.com

Many thanks to all of you who have inquired about our upcoming trips. We are pleased to announce that CulinaryCorps will be returning to New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf coast from:

June 1-6, 2008

We will be recruiting 12 culinary volunteers to join us for this week of service, education and connection.

Applications will be available on line March 1, 2008. Cost per participant (not including airfare) is $300 for students/recent culinary school graduates and $375 for professionals - includes housing, meals and transport in NOLA.

Good food, a good cause and a beautiful space…what more could one desire in a dining experience? Join our friends at the new Astor Center education space to enjoy a farm-driven meal created by restaurant luminary Michael Anthony (Gramercy Tavern) and cookbook maven, Peter Kaminsky. The menu reads like a locavore’s lullaby…

- Sheldon Farms Potato Chips
- Witenagemot Farm Butternut Squash Samosas with Cardamom Yogurt
- Open Faced Mini Manx Station Beef Burgers, House Made Buns and Roasted Organic Tomato Relish
- Witenagemot Farm Blue Corn Crackers and Nettle Meadow Goat Cheese Canapé
- Sheldon Farms Potato Pancakes with Saratoga Apple-Onion Rose Compote
- Celery and smoked Mountain View Farms Bacon custard with crispy Adirondack Red Potatoes and toasted almonds
- Mosaic of Mountain View Farms Chicken and Turnips with housed cured pancetta and Austrian Crescent potato salad
- Mountain View Farms Cotechino with pistachio, onion marmalade and shingled Eva potatoes
- Braised Manx Station Beef with roasted La Ratte potatoes, “black dirt” carrots and leeks
- Consider Bardwell Farmstead Cheese Selection
- Maple Syrup glazed Mountain View Farms Ham, French Toast and Apples

For tickets, click here.

Our friends at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum always have a way with words. Case in point, their great overview of our day archiving culinary treasures at Antoine’s.

A wonderful overview in the CMBC Community Update about CulinaryCorps’ latest brunch at the Holy Angels Farmers Market.

And a delightfully written shout-out from our friends at SlowFood USA!