Dishes

Celebrity chefs stir things up for charity More than 25 chefs will show off their dishes at the third annual Star Chefs of Baltimore Gourmet Fete 6 p.m. Nov. 25 at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore. Among those scheduled to appear at the fund-raiser for the March of Dimes are Michael Gettier from Antrim 1844, Jaime Luna from Babalu Grill, Barry Rumsey from Bicycle, Cindy Wolf from the Charleston and Jerry Pellegrino from Corks. In addition to a tasting, the chefs also have made donations for a live auction that includes private dinners and cooking lessons.

Khalid Chaudry won't give up the recipes behind the food at his new Mount Vernon restaurant, Alladin Kabob. When pressed about the magic behind the meat samosas, or the sprinkle of red powder on a lemon sitting atop a small salad, the restaurant's owner demurred. "Those are our spices," he said. "It's our secret. " Whatever those secret spice combinations are, they work. Alladin Kabob's menu stretches across the Middle East and through India, with a few American dishes thrown into the mix. Regardless of point of origin, Chaudry's food is expertly seasoned.

A bread pudding topped with a dark-chocolate sauce took the top prize at the 15th annual Chocolate Affair. The dessert, prepared by What's for Dinner Professional Chef Service, was voted the "Hot Chocolate," or tastiest chocolate treat, by a panel of 17 members of the media who sampled dishes offered by 34 restaurants and vendors. Chicken Mali Kebab, chicken marinated in garlic, ginger and green coriander, from Akbar Palace Restaurant, garnered the Sweet Relief prize for the best savory dish without chocolate.

In part two of our interview with "World of Warcraft" lead systems designer Greg Street, he discusses what it takes to be a game designer and what we can expect from "WoW's" latest expansion pack, as well as MMO games in general. If you missed part one of Game Cache's Q&A with street, you can find it here . The fourth "World of Warcraft" expansion pack, “Mists of Panadaria,” just went into beta testing. How is that going so far? This is a really fun time in the project for me. Once we get something in beta, there's enough stuff in there that players can try it out and there's still time to make changes.

* Item: Fresh From the Start Potatoes * What you get: 3 to 4 servings * Cost: About $1 to $1.75 * Preparation time: Use straight from package in a variety of recipes * Review: I'm sure potato peeling is becoming a lost art for many people. But as someone who tends to find the task loathsome, I can't help but be thrilled by the number of pre-washed, peeled and cut potato products now on the market. Fresh From the Start Potatoes are partially cooked, making them even more convenient. Following a recipe on the package, I used the Red Bliss Potatoes to make Herb Roasted Reds.

Q: I recently inherited two coquille (shell) dishes from my aunt. There is the mark "HR Quimper" on the front and "HR" on the back of each dish.I think my aunt inherited these coquille dishes from her mother-in-law in the 1920s.Could you please tell me the possible date when these items were made and the approximate value of each?A: Tin-glazed earthenware has been made in the French town Quimper since the 17th century. It is still being produced today. Quimper faience is well-known for the hand-painted scenes of Breton peasants, the sea and geometric or floral designs.

Food essayist and funnyman Calvin Trillin lamented in his book "American Fried": "I often have to sit in a Chinese restaurant helplessly while a tableful of Chinese businessmen across the room are stuffing down succulent-looking dishes that were obviously ordered off the wall."That's kind of how we felt at the Golden Gate Noodle House, where the specials list was written in Chinese. We watched as two young women shared a plate of glistening Chinese broccoli, and what looked like a country-style stew served in an iron pot. Neither was on the regular menu.

Vincent Mazza has a new "toy." He was the first on his block to get one. It's small, but he really, really likes it. Now his neighbors are getting them too.And that's grim news for the beleaguered cable television industry.The gizmo in the driveway of Mr. Mazza's Davidsonville home is a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) receiver -- the hottest new consumer electronics product to reach the marketplace since the VCR. With it, a viewer can bring in cable TV programs without paying a dime to the local cable TV monopoly.

Casa Giannerini seemed like one of those neighborhood restaurants that would go on forever, serving healthy portions of pasta and parmigiana to the citizens of Parkville and Hamilton. So it was a surprise to drive by recently and see that the Casa was no more. Fannie had arrived, and she looked great.The black-and-red color scheme has been scuttled, as have such kitschy Mediterraneanisms as the suit of armor; Fannie's is classily done in teal and chintz-look wallpaper, and despite the lights of the Bi-Rite Supermarket glowing through uncurtained windows, it looks more upper-middle-class Pikesville than old-fashioned neighborly Parkville.

NAME A STRETCH of North American coastline and a dish served there and chances are good that John Shields has been there, eaten that. From fresh scallops in New England to plump shrimp on the Gulf Coast to fresh halibut in the Pacific Northwest, Shields has stuck his fork in it. For the past two years, Shields traveled the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts of the United States gathering recipes and anecdotes to put in his new cookbook, Coastal Cooking With...

Are you ready for Sunday night's two-hour "Mad Men" season premiere? Take a look at our photo gallery of cocktails and dishes inspired by the airless, joyless overproduced television show. We found recipes for classic dishes from Danny's, The Chesapeake and the Harvey House and other Baltimore restaurants that flourished in the 1960s. And read David Zurawik's hilarious post on the momentous televison event. Tonight is the Drink Like a Mad Men Party at the Creative Alliance, featuring classic cocktails crafted by Doug Atwell of Rye. The party will include appetizers and hors d'ouevres that were popular during the 1960s, as well as music and visuals from the same era. Atwell will be talking about some of those classic cocktails Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. on WBAL radio 1090.

Tucked in a house in the maritime-centric neighborhood of Eastport, VIN 909 proves that Annapolis cuisine has more to offer than crab cakes and rockfish. The duo behind the wine cafe, manager/owner/sommelier (and Annapolis native) Alex Manfredonia and Chef Justin Moore, met while working in a San Francisco restaurant. When they decided to head back to the East Coast to open a restaurant of their own, they moved into the space that formerly housed the Wild Orchid Café. The duo brought along a love for the Mediterranean-inspired cuisine of California, plus a commitment to environmental sustainability — working with local farmers and using organic ingredients.

It's safe to say the South Carroll boys basketball team has taken on the personality of its point guard, senior Dan Mullen. In his fourth year on varsity, the two-year captain is smart, works hard and does whatever is needed to bring home wins. After the graduation of standout Ryan McTavish, who left the program as Carroll County's all-time leading scorer last year, many believed the Cavaliers would slip a bit this season following two state tournament appearances in the past three years.

Many Americans make meals out of leftovers from their meals. And while everyone knows to refrigerate perishables, not everyone is taking all the proper steps to ensure the next-day food is safe, according to the Institute of Food Technologists , a nonprofit society of food science professionals from academia, government and industry. The group definitely supports leftovers, and even says some foods actually taste better the next day, such as those with spices, because the flavors have time to meld.

Martyn Lawrence-Bullard left his home in England for Los Angeles 20 years ago, determined to be a movie star. The acting thing didn't exactly work out. But in one of those delightful turnabouts in life, he is now the interior designer to the stars. Ed Norton, the Osbournes, Cher and Kid Rock top an eclectic list of clients. Lawrence-Bullard has made the Architectural Digest and Elle Decor lists of top designers. He is a principal on Bravo TV's "Million Dollar Decorators. " He has a new book, "Live, Love & Decorate," with a foreword by client Elton John.

With all the hot spices at work, the first couple forkfuls of Chicken Biryani ($7.99) are liable to leave your lips tingling. But the downtown Thousand Kabobs packs in flavor with the flame — strips of scarlet tomato and glossy onion relieved the monotone texture, and the rice also helped mellow the heat. So does the naan. You get way more than enough rice and spice for 8 bucks with this biryani and you can still pick up a freshly tandoori-ed naan round for $1.50 and stay under $10. Thousand Kabobs' tandoori bread is a lighter weight than some with a charred bottom and a soft, chewy topside.

CHOCOLATE IS not just for dessert. You can have it as an entree mixed with shredded pork. Or you can toss it down before dinner as a chocolate martini. That is what I learned at the Chocolate Affair, the 13th annual fest and fund-raiser for the Center for Poverty Solutions, held last week at M&T Bank Stadium. Every February, as Valentine's Day approaches, Baltimore-area restaurants and caterers create dishes that pay tribute to the deep, delicious and sometimes sinful flavor of chocolate.

I ASSOCIATE November's cranky weather with the arrival of some of the great Maryland foods, our scrapple, sauerkraut, sour beef, buckwheat cakes and fried oysters. Once my grandmother Lily Rose and her sister, Great Aunt Cora, laid down their mops and scrubbing brushes in their annual battle with fall housecleaning, they moved on to the next pleasure. The dishes that issued from their warm and sunny Guilford Avenue kitchen for the next couple of months would make you a fan of these long nights and bone-chilling days.

In many cultures, especially Asian, a humble facade hides a fancy home inside. In this case, though, the inside of Pho Dat Thanh (pronounced "Foe Daht Than") in Snowden Marketplace, Columbia, isn't all that fancy, either. A single room, with a small bar to one side near the entrance, features silvery green walls with a tangerine-hued chair rail in the middle and rather non-descript prints above. The tables are bare-topped, with a stainless basket of condiments providing a bit of color.