Since March 2004 I have been honored to belong to a group called Les Dames d’Escoffier International, an invitational organization of women leaders in food, beverage, and hospitality whose mission is education, advocacy, and philanthropy. Over the past 15 years, our Seattle chapter has disbursed more than $240,000 for educational programs, community projects, and culinary scholarships for women in Washington state. 

Every year we host a fund-raising benefit. Kathy Casey Food Studios has been chosen as the site for this year’s event, which will be held on Thursday, October 16, at 6 p.m. It will celebrate the Seattle debut of the brand-new, Dames-branded cookbook entitled, Cooking with Les Dames d’Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink (Sasquatch Books, September 2008).

The fundraiser will be a walk-around reception featuring dishes created by the Seattle Dames whose recipes were chosen for inclusion in the new cookbook. Seattle Dames with recipes in the comprehensive new book, edited by Seattle Dame Marcella Rosene with Pat Mozersky, include Fran Bigelow (Fran’s Original Cheesecake), Braiden Rex-Johnson (Salmon Fillets Baked in Grape-Leaf Wraps), Gina Batali (Batali Family Stuffed Artichokes), and Lisa Dupar (Walnut Fennel Tarts). The book also includes recipes, beverage-pairing tips, and kitchen wisdom from leading Dames and culinary authorities from around the United States and Canada, including Lidia Bastianich, Nathalie Dupree, and Gale Gand. 

Attendance is limited for this exclusive gathering, and tickets cost $110 per person, which includes one copy of the cookbook. Additional copies of Cooking with Les Dames d’Escoffier will be available for sale that evening, with fifty percent of the proceeds going towards the Seattle Dames fundraising efforts. 

I encourage you to purchase a ticket, or tickets, on our Web site, as they are sure to go fast!