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JANET K. KEELERAnd they're not even pros. It's time for some bay area guys to show off their skills to raise money for scholarships.
Men who cook are still something of a novelty despite the preponderance of male chefs on TV cooking shows and in the nation's restaurant kitchens.
So curious is the average guy who owns and uses measuring cups that people will pay the price of admission just to sample fruit punch or fried chicken he's prepared.
The Tampa Bay chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women is banking on the culinary skills of the opposite sex, and our interest in them, for its 11th annual scholarship fundraiser. The women have done the planning, but it's the guys who will provide the grub for the Sunday event at St. Lawrence Parish in Tampa.
Fans of his rum cake will be glad that Sol Davis of Sol Davis Printing in Tampa is back after a year hiatus, organizer Angela Judge says. And maybe this will be the year that someone can coax the fruit punch recipe from musician Maurice Jackson.
"He's known to come late, and then people stand in line for his punch," Judge says.
Other food, prepared by more than 100 men, will include barbecued ribs and chicken plus collard greens, corn bread and jambalaya. Hillsborough County Commissioner Thomas Scott will contribute his signature 7UP and five-flavor pound cakes.
The cooks donate time and ingredients, and Verizon, TECO, Riley Construction and Bill Currie Ford provide the major corporate sponsorships. Last year, $5,000 was raised.
A little old-fashioned flirting accompanies the festivities, though it's not known if any love matches have resulted from all that food.
"Speaking from my perspective, a single woman, a man who cooks is attractive," Judge says. "A lot of single women come to me and ask me to point out the single men."
Jerry Watson, a district sales manager for Verizon Yellow Pages, is one of those single guys. He has cooked for the fundraiser every year and has convinced four of his seven brothers to join in. This year, Watson will make paella loaded with shrimp, scallops, fish and chicken. In the past, he has prepared shrimp pasta, collard greens, black-eyed peas and macaroni and cheese.
"I am self-taught," Watson says. "My mother wouldn't allow the boys to cook, only the girls. The first time I tried to make eggs after I left the house, I burned the pan."
Over the years, though, he's been able to get tips and recipes from his mother despite losing out on the one-on-one training his three sisters received.
Scott, who also is the senior minister of the 34th Street Church of God, is definitely not one of the single guys, but he draws a crowd anyway for his flavorful cakes, Judge says. Sunday, he'll slice and serve 10 cakes and likely fend off a few requests for whole ones. Between meetings last week, Scott shared his thoughts about cooking and his late mother's influence.
Question: Who taught you to cook?
Answer: I learned a lot about cooking from my mother. I came up from a family of 11 (in Georgia), and we all learned how to cook, iron, clean and sew. Everybody in the family was required to do chores.
Question: Most memorable meal of Mom's?
Answer: Meatloaf and mashed potatoes. And I love fried chicken; of course, I am a preacher, you know.
Question: What's your favorite cake to make?
Answer: Everybody loves the 7UP cake. People who taste it fall in love with it.
Question: What cookbook do you use?
Answer: I don't have a favorite one, really, but I do use an old-style church cookbook sometimes.
Question: Butter or margarine?
Answer: Butter. I just like butter, I guess because that's what I had coming up.
Question: Who cooks at your house?
Answer: My wife does. She's a good cook, but when we first started our school at the church, for about 6 months I did all the cooking for the children. We had macaroni and cheese, meatloaf, corn bread and collard greens. Can you believe it? People say kids won't eat, but when I get through with them, they eat. Since I became a commissioner (in 1996), I don't have as much time.
Question: Do you eat out much?
Answer: I take my family out to eat every Monday. We go out to dinner and have family time, usually some place like the Cheesecake Factory, Piccadilly's or Red Lobster.
Question: Mom's cooking or a restaurant?
Answer: I prefer my mother's cooking.
Spoken like a good son. And a true gourmet gent.
Easy 7UP Cake
1 box yellow cake mix
1 small box instant vanilla pudding
3/4 cup vegetable oil
10 ounces 7UP
For topping:
11/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup butter or margarine
Small can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 cup shredded coconut
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For the cake, mix all ingredients except 7 Up in a large bowl. Beat until light and fluffy. Add 7 Up, mixing on low speed until well-blended. Pour into lightly greased 9- by 13-inch pan. Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Top immediately.
While cake is baking, beat eggs with a fork in saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar, flour, butter, pineapple and juice, stirring constantly until thick. Add coconut. Prick cake with fork and pour topping over cake.
Serves 10.
Source: www.cdkitchen.com
If you go
The 11th annual Gourmet Gents: A Culinary Fanfare, sponsored by the Tampa Bay chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, is 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday at Higgins Hall, St. Lawrence Parish, 5225 N Himes Ave., Tampa. Ticket are $25 for adults and $12 for children 12 and younger. For tickets and more information, call Angela Judge at 813 269-9351 or e-mail her at afayjudge@aol.com