world hunger: your chance to help a little

As someone who spends a ridiculous amount of time thinking about food, photographing food, writing about food and most importantly eating it, I’m ashamed to say that it’s not very often that my thoughts turn to those in the world who don’t have enough to eat.

When I heard about the Menu For Hope initiative organised by food blogger extraordinaire, Pim, to raise money for the United Nations World Food Program it immediately grabbed my attention. A small chance to help those who don’t have the problem of deciding what to have for dinner because there often isn’t anything at all.

So how does it work? Menu For Hope, in its third year, is an online raffle where food bloggers from around the world donate prizes. People then go to First Giving, a third party secure website, where they can buy as many $US 10 tickets as they like, being careful to nominate which prize it is that they are bidding for.

Here at stonesoup, I have decided to offer a brand new copy of my two favourite cookbook purchases from this year. My collection has had some great additions throughout the year, but those of you who drop by on a regular basis won’t be surprised at my choice: Karen Martini’s Where the Heart Is and spunky Sean Moran’s Let it Simmer.

I’ve been a fan of Karen’s since she was the chef at Icebergs in Bondi and have been following her a weekly column in the Sunday Life section of the Sydney Sunday Herald for quite some time. And while I have a copy of many of the recipes torn from the paper, it’s so much nicer to have them bound all together with Petrina Tinslay’s gorgeous photos and a very handy index.

I’m estimating I’ve personally cooked over three quarters of the recipes from Karen’s book and have only had one failure (gluey potato & rice soup…eeweeh). And pretty much all of the ones that I haven’t yet brought to life are on my list to try when the seasons allow.

The second part of my prize, Sean’s book, is equally close to my heart. With his beautiful handwriting adorning the cover, this is one of those rare restaurant cookbooks that doesn’t just give you a sense of the food from the restaurant (and the recipes for your favourite treats). It is also a little window into the life of Sean, the very humble but amazing creative force behind one of my favourite restaurants: his ‘salty jewel’ at Bondi Beach: Sean’s Panaroma.

So if you’ve ever had the pleasure of a long boozy lunch at Sean’s and wondered how he gets his roast cook to be so moist and tasty, like I did on Saturday. Or you’ve lusted after his pistachio nougat. Or you’d like to read about his evocative dance of the paella. Or even if you haven’t ever had the opportunity to visit this Bondi Beach icon, this prize is for you.

Now’s your chance, for a mere $10US you could be in the running to win not one but both of these treasures. And with the opportunity to help those who go hungry day after day, what’s not to loose.

So get cracking. You’ve got until Dec 22nd to buy your tickets. Just go to the First Giving Menu For Hope site and follow the instructions. To be in the running to win these great books you’ll need to enter the code ‘AP11‘ in the personal message section.

To check out the other great prizes in the Asia Pacific area, including dinner at Tetsuya’s for 2, visit our area coordinator at Grab Your Fork. Or for the global prize list check out Chez Pim. For more information on how the World Food Program helps the hungry visit their web site.