Albany Times Union

A feel-good feast

Mac-n-cheese Bowl, a food bank fundraiser, set to mark 10th year

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In fall 2008, a reader of the Table Hopping blog on timesunion. com sent me an email describing how she and her daughter, fans of “real” macaroni-andcheese, had been sampling different mac-n-cheeses at area restaurant­s. She speculated that a charity fundraiser featuring restaurant-made mac-ncheese would be popular, especially during the upcoming winter months.

I brought the idea to the Regional Food Bank. Familiar with their history of well-executed events, I thought they would do a good job with what came to be known as the Mac-ncheese Bowl. Being a journalist for a daily newspaper whose outlets include a blog that allows me to publish as soon as I’m done writing, I was surprised and dismayed to be told the Food Bank needed more than a year to put together a big new event. But they took the time, did it right, and the first year was such a hit that people figured out a way, on the day of the event, to exploit a loophole and nab tickets that were technicall­y sold out.

It was popular from the start with restaurant­s, too. Inspired by what seems to be an inborn competitiv­eness among chefs, some restaurant­s made mac-n-cheese extravagan­ces that wowed with their creativity. Valente’s Restaurant of

Watervliet, which at the time didn’t even offer mac-n-cheese on its menu, won two awards that first year, and 18 months later had a frozen version available in supermarke­ts. Home cooks were just as enthusiast­ic: The first year’s winner repeated his victory seven years later; another, emboldened by winning two years in a row, launched a food truck and catering company. And last year, we invited kid cooks for the first time, drawing entries from accomplish­ed 8- to 13-year-olds.

And here we are in 2019, looking forward to the 10th annual Mac-n-cheese Bowl, scheduled for Saturday, March 2, at Siena College in Loudonvill­e. In its first nine years, the event has raised $355,000 for the Regional Food Bank. It warms me every winter to see 2,000 people, dozens of restaurant­s and a squad of home cooks, all united by a common love of a universal comfort food at an event inspired by a reader’s suggestion more than a decade ago. Like mac-n-cheese itself, sometimes the simplest ideas have a way of working out the best.

The reader who suggested the idea is Diane Digiorgio. She and her mac-n-cheese-loving daughter, Kaitlin Soule, will be guest judges this year at the Mac-ncheese Bowl. ▶ sbarnes@timesunion.com 518-454-5489 blog.timesunion. com/tablehoppi­ng @ Tablehoppi­ng facebook.com/ Stevebarne­sfoodcriti­c

 ?? John Carl D’annibale / Times Union ?? Elizabeth and Tim Dunn of Malta and daughters Evelyn, 7, left, and Maureen, 4, taste the offerings at the 2017 Mac-n-cheese Bowl in Colonie.
John Carl D’annibale / Times Union Elizabeth and Tim Dunn of Malta and daughters Evelyn, 7, left, and Maureen, 4, taste the offerings at the 2017 Mac-n-cheese Bowl in Colonie.
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 ??  ?? steve barnes Table Hopping
steve barnes Table Hopping
 ?? John Carl d’annibale / times union ?? Appetites are sated at the 2017 mac-n-cheese Bowl at Siena College’s marcelle Athletic Complex.
John Carl d’annibale / times union Appetites are sated at the 2017 mac-n-cheese Bowl at Siena College’s marcelle Athletic Complex.
 ?? Jason Kraus / Special to the times union ?? Stephanie espinal’s pork mole mac-n-cheese was the winner of the home-cooks category at the 2016 mac-n-cheese Bowl.
Jason Kraus / Special to the times union Stephanie espinal’s pork mole mac-n-cheese was the winner of the home-cooks category at the 2016 mac-n-cheese Bowl.
 ?? John Carl d’annibale / times union ?? Pig n Whistle’s dad’s Signature Baked mac-n-cheese at the 2017 mac-n-cheese Bowl.
John Carl d’annibale / times union Pig n Whistle’s dad’s Signature Baked mac-n-cheese at the 2017 mac-n-cheese Bowl.

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