Five world-class chefs teamed up with Garrett Weber-Gale on Saturday night, in New York City, to create an incredible culinary event that showcased healthy eating with gourmet taste. It also raised money for the USA Swimming Foundation. The exclusive Gold Medal Dining Experience was held at the Bouley Test Kitchen, a charming venue that puts diners in the midst of those actually creating their meal.
Bouley Test Kitchen
Consider the chefs who contributed their talents, Daniel Boulud, Tom Colicchio, David Bouley, Daniel Humm, and Florian Bellanger. Any one of them has enough celebrity from their restaurants, many TV appearances, cooking awards, and cookbooks to draw a crowd for an event like this. Having them together was unprecedented. “There’s still a part of me that can’t believe all of them accepted when I asked,” Garrett said. “It was so generous of them to give their time, talent, and the time of their staffs.”
NBC Swimming Commentator and gold medalist Rowdy Gaines acted as emcee. Guests in the capacity crowd ranged from a masters swimmer in his 80s to hedge fund managers, foodies, and people who just love swimming.
Chefs Tom Colicchio and Daniel Boulud Share Tips on Cooking Healthy Venison with Garrett Weber-Gale
“This event started as an idea last year after I attended an event here at the test kitchen,” Garrett said. “Then Chuck Wielgus (Executive Director of USA Swimming) got behind it. So much work went into pulling it all together and here we are.”
In keeping with the driving idea behind the creation of AthleticFoodie, each chef was asked to serve a course that showcased his style but with a healthy twist. “What we did here tonight shows you really can create great food that can also be good for you,” Garrett explained.
Some of the food created included venison with heritage grains and huckleberries, spiced butternut squash soup with toasted almond slivers, wild mushrooms with toro and black truffles, John Dory poached with citrus, peeky toe crab with apple and walnut dressing, and caramelized phyllo dough with lemon sherbert and passion fruit sauce.
Daniel Humm's John Dory poached with citrus
As the night wound down, Garrett shared a few final thoughts, “These chefs have been an inspiration to me. I’ve learned so much from them. I am truly honored that they agreed to support our cause. The money we raised will help save lives by teaching underprivileged kids to swim.”
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