“What’s for dinner?” is a question that for many in Silicon Valley generates excitement and salivation. Italian? Chinese? A steak dinner? Something sweet? Something savory? Something simple? Something expensive?
However, for many residents that question is a source of dread and worry as budgets are tight and ingredients are scarce.
West Valley Community Services is bringing awareness to the other side of the “what’s for dinner?” question via the fourth annual Chefs of Compassion: Cooking for a Cause. For the Sept. 19 event, a quartet of Silicon Valley’s finest chefs will demonstrate that cooking on a budget with a nearly bare cupboard is not easy.
Chefs of Compassion challenges well-known local chefs to prepare a four-course dinner for attendees that using only ingredients found in the WVCS food pantry.
“Not a lot of people are aware of food insecurity in Santa Clara County,” says Jacqueline de Guzman, WVCS director of community resources. “They don’t know what it looks like, and each community is different. Our community really rallies behind our food pantry.”
The pantry is one of the Cupertino-based nonprofit’s signature services. In 2012-13, the food pantry distributed 767,519 pounds of food to 11,189 households with a total of 27,915 individuals, according to WVCS.
Chefs of Compassion helps raise money and awareness to keep the food pantry as a stocked horn of plenty. Participating chefs include Isamu Kanai with Bushido in Mountain View, Joel Whitaker of Mixx in Mountain View, Kha Lu from Hay Market and Kansui Ramen in San Jose and Lee Hernandez of Palacio in Los Gatos.
“The quality chefs have been amazing; they keep getting more unique and outdoing each other every year,” says de Guzman.
Ticket are $125 each, and the event will be held at the Computer History Museum’s Hahn Auditorium, 1401 N. Shoreline Blvd., in Mountain View. WVCS is hoping to attract 300 attendees this year.
Chefs of Compassion is not unlike TV cooking competition show “Iron Chef.” The challenge began weeks ago when the chefs were brought separately to the Vista Drive food pantry to select ingredients and then prepare their randomly assigned portion of a four-course meal. The final meals will be served to attendees on Sept. 19.
Participating chefs were each brought to agency’s headquarters and given 10 minutes to “shop” for ingredients in the pantry.
“You have to be quick; that was the exciting part,” says chef Hernandez.
Adding to the intrigue is that the food pantry never has the same selection of groceries each day. It all depends on donations during a given week and the generosity of WVCS’ many partners. Exceptions are made for oil, flour, sugar, herbs, and seasonings.
“You think canned corn and maybe Spam, or some cereal and some rice, but there are so many unique ingredients from stores and farmers markets,” says de Guzman. “You can create a very good meal. It’s not your typical expired milk from a food pantry.”
“I think it’s a great message,” says chef Lu. “It’s great entertainment to see an ‘Iron Chef’ kind of thing, and a lot of people who come to this event, they’re not the type of people who represent a need for [food pantry] services or may not even part of that community,
“It’s a great way to see just what is offered to these low-income families and the services that provide for them and the limitations that go along with them.”
A film crew documented each chef’s trip to the food pantry and their preparation of the meal back at their respective restaurants. These videos will be shown at the event.
Participating chefs will also be judged on a five-point scale for taste, presentation and creativity. A second award will be presented to the chef who receives the most votes from event attendees. Judges include Carolyn Junge, editor of FoodGal.com; NBC Bay Area anchor Mike Inouye; “Edible Silicon Valley” managing editor Stewart Putney; Dishcrawl founder Tracy Lee; and LV Mar restaurant owner Manuel Martinez.
“I think the event is great. It’s a good cause to begin with and brings awareness about what this particular organization is doing. I think it’s awesome,” Hernandez says.
West Valley Community Services is a private nonprofit, community-based agency that has been providing direct assistance and referral services to the West Valley communities of Santa Clara County for nearly 40 years. The nonprofit’s food pantry is stocked by Second Harvest Food Bank, local grocery stores, bakeries and community donations. The pantry is staffed mostly by volunteers.
For more information and to purchase tickets, call 408.255.8033, ext. 305, or visit chefsofcompassion.org.