Everyone is invited to bring their appetites to HAVEN’s Men In The Kitchen event on Thursday, Oct. 4 at the Corpus Christi Center of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Tomahawk. Five volunteer chefs are featured who are each preparing their personal specialties from which diners may choose. All of the chefs develop their own menus and purchase the ingredients, then prepare their meals for a table of eight guests, and also serve those who dine at their tables. Each menu includes several courses, such as appetizers or salads, followed by an entrée and sides, and finishing with dessert. Diners will be asked to select their choice of menu when they reserve their tickets.
HAVEN is happy to introduce the cooks for this event along with their delicious menus.
•Chef John Cole who is Tomahawk’s Director of Public Works is calling his menu “Sizzling Sicilian Pasta!” His meal begins with a garden salad and choice of dressings accompanied by an Italian olive oil and Balsamic vinegar herb dip with a roll. John’s main dish will be rigatoni served with rich, red marinara sauce and hot Italian sausage topped with fresh grated parmesan cheese. Fresh sautéed garlic green beans and homemade garlic bread will be the sides. Dessert will be fresh creamy cherry cheesecake.
•The menu of Merrill Courier and Foto News reporter Jeremy Ratliff is entitled “Voila” and starts with a Romaine salad topped with cherry tomatoes, olives, and red onion served with a choice of dressings. Garlic butter breadsticks and tomato basil soup also precede the main course of a boneless chicken breast stuffed with sautéed roma tomatoes, baby bella mushrooms, green bell and red sweet peppers and onion served over garlic oregano linguine and covered with a basil marinara sauce. Dessert is tiramisu.
•Randy and SuAnne Vannatter of Bambino’s team up their culinary skills for a meal they simply describe as “Prime Rib.” Caesar salad is the first course followed by the appetizer “Crab Wrap Goon.” Their main entrée of prime rib is served with a twice baked potato and cheddar Italian fresh bread. Dessert is frozen tiramisu.
•Chef Pete McConnell, who teaches tech ed for Merrill Area Public Schools, is building his menu around the traditional comfort food of “Shepherd’s Pie.” Each of his diners will also enjoy a relish tray, pub salad, rolls, and chocolate mint dessert.
•Preparing his specialty of “South Dakota Wild Pheasant Stroganoff” is Chef Doug Williams, a former Mayor of Merrill. His meal will begin with salad followed by the wild pheasant stroganoff served over homemade egg noodles. Cheesecake will be the dessert.
Tickets for Men In The Kitchen are $35 each and must be reserved in advance. Call HAVEN at 715-536-1300 for more information and to purchase a ticket for the meal of your choice, as tables can fill up quickly. The evening will begin at 5 p.m. with a social hour and dinner will be served at 6 p.m. After dinner, there will be a short program, followed by a live auction of many items donated by local businesses, and other drawings.
HAVEN is very grateful to all of this year’s “Men In The Kitchen” for donating their cooking talents and delicious meals. Thanks also go to the many area businesses who contribute to the silent auction and drawings.
All proceeds from Men In The Kitchen will benefit the work of HAVEN (Household Abuse Victims Emergency Network) which provides advocacy, resources and shelter to those who have experienced any of the many forms of interpersonal violence including domestic abuse, sexual assault, elder abuse, child abuse, harassment, stalking and human trafficking. For information or help, call HAVEN, 24 hours, at 715-536-1300.