Updates from the Kitchen
The heart and soul of community.
June 2020
The need to self-isolate may have kept us from offering classes, hosting events, catering private events, and leading business team building sessions, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t been busy! Open Kitchen Events has been using this time during the COVID-19 pandemic to support our neighbors, find innovative ways to bring great food to your plates, and planning for the future. We’re excited that Open Kitchen will be able to get back into our kitchen at the Plaza Mercado at 112 West San Francisco St, #310, (an indoor mall), on June 1st with the Governor’s latest ease on COVID-19 restrictions!
Below is a snapshot of some of the activities we’ve been cooking up.
Santa Feans Caring + Cooking Project
As we were collectively realizing the extent to which COVID-19 would impact our lives, Open Kitchen immediately responded to the clear need for support.
Between March 25-27, Chef Hue-Chan Karels teamed up with Bobby Beals to organize a group of five concerned citizens. In just 48 short hours, we shopped, cooked, packed, and delivered 588 healthy meals with immune-boosting ingredients for 22 households in the Santa Fe area.
In the News! Click media coverage at Santa Fe Reporter & KSFR!
We implemented extra safety measures throughout every step of the food handling and cooking process: sanitizing every package, sanitizing as we worked, and making sure every meal was properly cooked and delicious!
Natural Grocers donated food and our previous partner, Kitchen Angels, provided packaging. Since our kitchen at Mercado Plaza has been locked down, Monte del Sol Charter School let us use their commercial kitchen. We also received many generous donations and messages of support.
THANK YOU to all who helped bring nutritious and tasty meals to community in need!
Asian Inspired Brunch
June 14
We are delighted to DELIVER to YOU our special pop-up brunch! Chef Hue-Chan Karels created this menu, which is inspired by the fresh, vibrant flavors and personalities of assorted Asian cultures and cuisines, and highlights seasonal, locally sourced ingredients.
This event was originally planned in partnership with La Reina at El Rey Court, but due to dining restrictions, we have changed it to delivery. But, the brunch must go on! Your prepared meal will be delivered to you on Saturday, June 13 for you to enjoy for brunch on Sunday, June 14.
Cooked + Delivered
We’ve been hard at work creating the newest offering from Open Kitchen – a meal delivery! Experience something new and delectable each week. You can order globally-inspired dishes that are full of immune-boosting nutrients and we will deliver to your door. There has been a lot of logistics and little details to work out, but its been worth it because we’ve also been testing lots of gorgeous recipes. The menus for the first 5 weeks are available to view and you can start ordering on June 5.
Ratatouille Galette
Powerhouse Purple Cabbage Soup
Vietnamese Ginger
BBQ Chicken
‘Pho Love’
Rice Noodle Soup
Vietnamese Curry Shrimp
Open Kitchen Facebook Group
Food is our common ground and the food we prepare and consume is much more than physical nourishment. It can nourish our spirits and nurture our connections with others. Food can tell tales of who we are – our cultural identity, traditions, beliefs, and unique histories – and grounds us with a sense of place.
To help keep community together, we started the Open Kitchen FB Group. People can use this space to explore our common connection through food by sharing stories, recipes, new ideas, creative discoveries, and meaningful traditions. Please join this growing community that is helping us realize our passion!
Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram! Join the Open Kitchen Facebook group and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Virtual Kitchen
We were honored to support Creative Santa Fe’s community fundraising event, Virtual LemonAid on May 15. We made a video making homemade limoncello and candied lemon peels. Learn more here.
Limoncello and Candied Lemon Peels
We had the opportunity to support another of our favorite non-profits, Cooking With Kids. Watch this amusing and educational video about basic cooking lessons – healthy eating, collaboration, human kindness, sharing, and creativity.
Cooking Lessons for Cooking for Kids
We’ve had 2 virtual culinary events: the Cinco de Mayo Tequila, Sotol & Mezcal Tasting with Fabiola Gonzalez, and, the first Mystery Ingredient Cook-Off, featuring 5 creative cooks sharing dishes using the mystery ingredient LEMON.
The first Mystery Ingredient Cook-Off
Mystery Ingredient Cook-Off Chefs & Recipes
These recipes are posted on Open Kitchen’s FB Group, so join us!
Limoncello Ricotta Cheesecake
By Douglas Borden & Valerie Melino Borden
Lemon Lavender Grilled Chicken served with Eggplant w/ Buttermilk & Yogurt Sauce, Pomegranate & Za’atar
By Heather Van Cleave
Lemon Lavender Truffles & Lemon Pork with Handmade Tagliatelle
By Kathleen Mathai
Nargisi Kofta, Chauna Plau w/ Lemon & Afghan Eggplant w/ Sumac
By Miraj Bukhari-Frayer
traditional dishes from her roots in Pakistan & Afghanistan
Spring Lemon Tiramisu w/ Grilled Lemons, Limes & Grapefruit
& Homemade Lemon Pudding
By Rosa Bustamante
Learning in the Virtual Kitchen
Cooking Videos & Recipes
“Powerhouse Purple Cabbage Soup”
Chef Hue-Chan started a series of online cooking videos to share healthy cooking recipes. You can learn to make the immune-boosting Powerhouse Purple Cabbage Soup and the delicious ‘root to leaf’ vegan recipes for Spiced Carrot & Beet Fritters and Carrot-top Pesto.
“Spiced Carrot & Beet Fritters” and
“Carrot-top & Pistachio Pesto”
Lost, Found, Re-imagining
Chef-Hue Chan teamed up with Santa Fe gems Carlos Carulo and Ceci Tadofr to launch Lost, Found, Re-imagining. This video series shares food stories about culture, identity, displacement, and resiliency. The first three episodes will be done in collaboration with SITE Santa Fe as a follow-up to their Digest This! Series.
For the first video Chef Hue-Chan Karels made Bánh Cuốn – Vietnamese steamed rice crêpes filled with ground pork & shiitake mushrooms, served with Nước Chấm – Vietnamese dipping sauce, bean sprouts and fresh herbs. “This dish was the last dish my family and I feasted on as we departed Vietnam on April 23, 1975 – a week before Saigon fell.”
For another Lost, Found, Re-imagining, Chef Hue-Chan visited Carlos Carulo, who prepared a wonderful Jerusalem dish that he inherited from his grandmother and great aunts – Rice & Beef Stuffed Zucchini Braised with Lamb & Tomatoes.
He shared memories of growing up in Chile and how the fragrance and sounds of his relatives cooking would lure him away from playing and into the kitchen. It was such a delight to get a glimpse of how the cooking experience shaped this artist’s work – and how his artwork, in turn, has shaped his cooking. It’s a beautifully fluid and organic process!
Quality & Safety are our priorities!
