A couple of times each year, I auction off a dinner party. Last night, I made dinner for six for the winner of last year's Witham Health Services Gala Auction. Witham is my community hospital and I try to support them in any way I can. My donated auction item was a dinner for six using as many fresh, seasonal, and local ingredients as possible. The dinner is prepared in the winner's home and I even clean up.
This is a way to double my contribution to the hospital. I buy the ingredients for two or three hundred bucks (including wine) and the auction item usually goes for $600-$700 bucks - the hospital gets the proceeds. By the way, if you are planning to go to this years gala (May 17), I'll be auctioning off another dinner party for this year. Here is the menu from last night.
- Appetizer - Crostini with Chevre, Caramelized Onions, and Mission Fig Marmalade
- First Course - Salad of Endive, Fennel, and Blood Oranges
- Second Course - Mini Shrimp Scampi Pizza
- Intermezzo - Limoncello Granita
- Third Course -Beef Tenderloin Marsala with Roasted Asparagus and a Gratin of Potatoes and Artisan Cheeses
- Dessert - Flourless Chocolate Torte with Mint-Infused Ganache
Ingredients for the evening’s dinner came from the following Indiana farmers, artisans, and shopkeepers:
Cheeses from Capriole Farm, Rockville and Traders Point Creamery, Zionsville
Asparagus from Melon Acres, Oaktown
Beef from Fischer Farms, Kenya
Herbs and Spices from Terra Spice Company, Walkerton
Eggs from Stout’s Melody Acres, Franklin
Chocolate from David Alan Chocolatier, Lebanon
Mint Oil from Wappel Farm, San Pierre
Wines from Grapevine Cottage, Zionsville
Coffee from Hubbard & Cravens, Indianapolis
Each time I do this I get asked if I would ever do this sort of thing for non-charitable purposes - i.e., do it as a paid gig. I've always said no. I got asked again last night and I said "maybe." This is not the way I would want to spend every Saturday night, but I might do it a few times each year. If you're interested, let me know and we can talk.
There is something kind of cool about seeing for the first time, the cover art for a book you've written. You can click on the image to enlarge it. Indiana University Press Graphics Dude Jamison Cockerham did a great job with this. Here's a little deconstruction of what you'll see here. The title "Home Grown Indiana" is really three different images. The word "Home" is from a cross stitch, "Grown" is from a rustic farm-stand sign, and "Indiana" is from the Interstate welcome sign seen as you enter the Hoosier state. Surrounding the title are some shots of the many delicious products you can find across our great state. The book will be available July 7th. You can go here for more information and to sign up for an email notification when it is available for purchase. 
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