TECH WRITER BRANCHES OUT: The work of Saratogan Carol Gilbert appears in the December issue of Bon Appetit in the "Too Busy To Cook" section. A brief bio and two of her recipes were published. One was a salad: Bibb lettuce with candied walnuts, oranges and feta. The other was a fruit compote with port, cinnamon and ginger.
Gilbert, a tech writer at SeeCommerce, is a longtime gourmet cook. The local AAUW Supper Club has been one of the grateful recipients of her hobby. That chapter of the AAUW, American Association of University Women, meets bimonthly.
"I still enjoy cooking and appreciate good food, but there are limits to how much time can be invested in its preparation," Gilbert says. One of the selling points for her magazine entry, she feels, is the fact that she wrote her own bio, and it was unlike the usual Bon Appetit offering.
In it she described herself as a one-woman documentation department for a start-up, and said that it took her 10 years to realize she didn't have to do everything from scratch: she could allow herself to buy premade dressings, desserts, etc., if she was also to continue to climb the corporate ladder.
One thing I find surprising is the fact that the magazine changed the recipes. They substituted Bibb for butter lettuce and oranges for raspberries, probably to accommodate the seasons and accessibility to fruits, Gilbert suggests. The magazine also added ginger to the compote.
Husband David Gilbert is a retired Lockheed systems analyst who enjoys the fruits of her labors and is the breadmaker in the family, a fine complement to her endeavors. Carol draws up weekly menus and shops only once a week. "I couldn't do home-cooked meals without that planning."
She and fellow Saratogan Judy Rossman are in charge of January's AAUW Supper Club menu, which they'll be test-driving at home over the next few weeks.
CALLING ALL SAXOPHONISTS: Picture this—1,000 saxophonists playing their hearts out in an assembly on the Great Wall of China. Such a stirring vision may sound like a pipe dream, but it's not. This impressive sound sensation is set for June 23, 2003, International Olympic Day.
The idea is to show the Great Wall as a symbol of peace, bringing people of all nations together through music. Five hundred Chinese saxophonists are expected to join 500 from the United States and elsewhere. Sponsors are the Santa Cruzbased Nuclear Whales Saxophone Orchestra and the Poly Culture & Art Company of China.
The conductor will be Pulitzer Prizewinner Gunther Schuller, and the music director is Mark Watters, conductor at the '96 and '02 Olympics. Los Gatan Judy Bingman, former band director at Los Gatos High School, will be one of the musicians in this heart-stopping performance.
Workshops, master classes and showcase performances will also be part of the proceedings, and the group will go to Beijing for a concert, too. Imagine the impact on the senses (and heartstrings) that this mass gathering of musicians will produce. For more information, call 800.993.7621 or visit www.nuclearwhales.com.
BREAKFAST WITH SANTA: The Saratoga Rotary presents its annual Breakfast with Santa Dec. 14. Members buy and distribute Christmas toys for more than 200 kindergartners and first-graders at Washington Elementary School in downtown San Jose. Ed Porter performs the Santa ho-ho-hoing.
Meanwhile, other Rotarians distribute pizza, sodas and presents to the youngsters. Face painting and balloons are also part of the morning festivities. Now that Porter is no longer portly, more padding will be needed for the bearded one.
THEATRICAL EATING DIS AND DAT: Peformances of the culinary sendup, Eating Dis Order, Eating Dat Order, now playing at Theatre on San Pedro Square in San Jose, have been extended to Jan. 31. Written, directed and performed by Saratogan Gary De Mattei, the play is described as two delicious acts of a cooking comedy.
Performance times are 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sundays. The box office number is 408.283.0200, and tickets are $20 and $25.
HOLIDAY HIKING: "Family Outdoor Discovery: Creeks and Critters" is the name of the leisurely two-mile hike at Rancho San Antonio from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Dec. 14 with interpretive aide Jessica Morgan. Reservations are required, and the outing is suitable for children ages 412.
The phone number for reservations is 650.691.2150. There is also a four-mile hike on Skyline Ridge on Dec. 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This hike is called "Winter's Wander" and is led by docents Strether and Tommi Smith. Hikers will take the Ridge Trail to Alpine Pond, stop at Daniels Nature Center for lunch, then proceed around Horseshoe Lake. The Skyline Ridge parking lot is the meeting place.
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By Mary Ann Cook