• Brian Chilson
• 2012 Jewish Food Festival

Courtesy of Times photographer Brian Chilson, here are some shots from the Jewish Food Festival, which took place yesterday at River Market Pavilion.

More photos after the jump.

• Jess Miller
• Baked goods abound at the Jewish Food Festival

The Jewish Food Festival is returning to the River Market Pavilion this Sunday, May 6, and if the food is anywhere near as delicious as it was last year, we're all in for a treat. The festival kicks off with a Jewish breakfast at 8:30 a.m. and will continue through 4 p.m. In addition to the wide variety of food from different aspects of Jewish culture, the Jewish Federation of Arkansas will also have music from the B Flats, The Klezmer Band, and Shechinotes, as well as booths that will showcase "various aspects of Jewish life from Arkansas to ancient Israel."

Having attended last year's festival, I can vouch for the excellence of the food. Personal favorites from the 2011 festival included latkes (seasoned crisp potato pancakes), chopped liver and cabbage rolls stuffed with beef and rice. Fans of great falafel and kabobs are in luck, too, as the smell of frying chickpeas and roasted meat will have your mouth watering almost as soon as you enter the pavilion. Foods from both the Middle Eastern and European Jewish traditions are well-represented at the festival, and the folks serving up the tastiness are more than willing to talk to you about what this food means to them and to their culture.

As good as all that sounds, though, the highlight of the festival is the baked goods area. Fruit- and nut-filled rugelach, chewy macaroons, apple cakes and an assortment of other baked goods are piled high in decadent and tantalizing heaps on table after table. Be sure not to miss the babka, a Russian coffee cake that I admit to eating in its entirety before I even made it home from last year's event. If bread is the staff of life, then the bakers at this festival know what good living is all about.

This is one of my favorite cultural events held in the city every year and also one of the most delicious. Admission is free, and tickets may be purchased on-site to trade for the tasty stuff.

Trio's changes it's menu fairly often — nearly every month, according to catering manager Stephanie Caruthers. And for the past decade or so, each May has been a presentation of Mexican interior entrees, co-inspired by Cinco de Mayo and owner Capi Peck's adoration of Mexican cuisine. "It's not Tex-Mex, Cal-Mex or Ark-Mex," Caruthers says. "We try to keep it really authentic."

This year's Cinco de Mayo menu includes Cabo Fish Tacos, made of mahi mahi and served with pickled onion, jalapeno, chipotle crema, pico de gallo, lime and avocado; Carne Asada Sopes — thick, handmade tortillas, layered with refried pinto beans and achiote-rubbed steak; Chile Relleno stuffed with cumin, coriander, Oaxaca cheese and garlic-rubbed pork shoulder; and a vegetarian wild mushroom risotto. A full menu is available online.

The specials are only available at dinner. If you're of the drinking mind, try some Mexican beer or a tequila-based cocktail. Caruther's recommends the Agave Fresca, made with lime and agave nectar.

This Saturday from 7 p.m. to midnight, the largest crawfish boil in Arkansas (complete with corn, potatoes and fixins) will take place at North Little Rock's Dickey Stephens ballpark. The fifth annual volunteer-organized Craws for a Cause will raise money to support premature babies, with the March of Dimes being the largest beneficiary. Last year, organizers say the event raised $8,700 for the Baptist Heath Foundation's NICU and nearly $10,000 for other organizations that help premature babies and their families. But this year's event has been shrouded in controversy. KATV reports that the charity (which is not an official 501-c) hasn't accounted for $20,000 in funds.

Scotty Adams, the event organizer, addressed this report in his press release: In 2010, Craws for a Cause applied to be categorized as a 501-c3 non-profit organization, and only recently learned that one missing document prevented the completion of this status. The organization has since supplemented the paperwork and is working to remedy the issue. Craws for a Cause has addressed all tax issues resulting from this omission...All of the funds raised by Craws for a Cause go directly toward the cost of putting on the event and to the charitable organizations it supports. The event is organized by volunteers who do not personally profit from the event... An itemized list of income and expenses for the 2011 event is here.

It's time once again for The Great American Bake Sale, and our local food bloggers and businesses stand ready to help end child hunger by selling all of you some tasty treats. Last year's event helped raise over $1,000 for Share Our Strength, a national nonprofit organization that fights child hunger by building partnerships between the public and private sectors as well as investing in local organizations that fight hunger. This year's bake sale will be held on Saturday, April 28th adjacent to the Argenta Certified Farmers Market from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. and will feature a variety of baked goods for purchase.

The event is hosted again this year by Christie Ison, a Pulaski Tech culinary student and author of the blog Fancy Pants Foodie, and she's lined up baked goods from many of our local bloggers as well as professional offerings from the Peabody Hotel, Argenta Market, Brown Sugar Bake Shop, Whole Foods, Blue Cake Company, Gigi's Cake Boutique - and there will even be goodies for the gluten-free crowd courtesy of Dempsey Bakery. All proceeds will go to Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign, and the bake sale itself is a wonderful opportunity for all of you to meet some of the folks who write our state food blogs. Child hunger is an issue that many in our state deal with on a daily basis, and I'd like to encourage all of you to either participate by donating goods, donating your time, or just stopping by and buying something delicious for yourself. There will be bake sales of this nature held all across the country, so this is a great opportunity to show the entire country that Little Rock has a big heart.

There's still time to participate, so for more information, contact Christie Ison at christie@fancypantsfoodie.com.

• Jess Miller
• A basket of goodies from The Savory Pantry

Two of my favorite things in the world are gourmet shops and free samples, which makes The Savory Pantry one of the best places around to visit. On any given day there are any number of fruit preserves, pepper jellies, flavored salts, and imported olive oils to sample at the Hot Springs store, and it’s this hands-on approach to fine food that makes the Savory Pantry unique. In these days of high gas prices, it’s hard for me to make it down to visit Hot Springs on a regular basis, so I was excited when owner Keeley DeSalvo announced a Little Rock “Tweet Up” at the Bernice Garden for all Central Arkansas Twitter followers and other fans.

“We have many Twitter followers from Little Rock, and we wanted to meet them in person and thank them for their interest in The Savory Pantry,” says DeSalvo, promising a full range of artisinal foods to sample and purchase. Refreshments will also include “wine, water, and spirits” served up amongst the sculptures of the South Main park, and tips on entertaining and hosting parties will be discussed. I’ve always found the Savory Pantry crew to be very knowledgeable about the products they sell, so don’t hesitate to ask about anything you try.

While designed to be a chance for the Savory Pantry’s existing Twitter followers to meet in person, everybody is welcome to come see what tasty things the Savory girls have to try. The Tweet Up is Thursday, May 10 from 5-7pm at the Bernice Garden on the corner of Daisy Bates and South Main. Admission is free.

And just in case you don't get your Cajun fill at tonight's Ragun' Cajun Bash, The Allen School for special-needs children is serving up a Jumbo Gumbo fundraiser in the River Market Pavilions tomorrow, April 13, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. There will be a jumbo competition with cash prizes and guest judges Todd Gold of Purple Cow, David Bennett of Vieux Carre, Billy Ginocchio of Pulaski Tech and Andre Poirot of The Peabody. The Greasy Greens — a Little Rock fave since the 70's — will perform beginning at 6 p.m. Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the gate.

Nurture your internal ragin' Cajun and help some folks out, courtesy of CARTI's eighth annual Ragun' Cajun Bash, which is tonight at the River Market Pavilion in downtown Little Rock. What you get: New Orleans-style crawfish and trimmings, silent auction and live jazz by Little Rock's own Lagniappe, free adult beverages. Doors open at 6 p.m., and food's served through 9 p.m. Tickets are $40 at the door, and reserved tables for ten are $650 and include a personal server. Last year this event attracted nearly 1,300 people and raised $95,000 for CARTI, which offers cancer diagnostics and care in Arkansas, regardless of patients' ability to pay.

• courtesy of Dominica
• Chef Alon Shaya of New Orlean's Domenica

Alon Shaya, an award-winning New Orleans chef, speaks at the Clinton School next Thursday, April 5, on opening and sustaining a restaurant in post-Katrina New Orleans. Shaya is co-owner of Domenica, an Italian restaurant in New Orlean's historic Roosevelt Hotel. His talk,"Rebuilding New Orleans: One Plate at a Time" is from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Clinton School of Public Service, in Sturgis Hall. It's free and open to the public. Reserve your seats by emailing publicprograms@clintonschool.uasys.edu, or calling 501-683-5239.

This Thursday, March 29, U.S. Pizza Co. will donate 10 percent of it's dinner food proceeds from eight locations to Our House, a nonprofit that, according to its website, "provides the working homeless – individuals and families – with shelter, housing, job training, education, free childcare and summer youth programs, in order to equip them with the skills to be successful in the workforce, the community and their own families."

The Big Red Ball Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of the Little Rock Kickball Association, once again presents Chili with a Kick from 10:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25 at Dickey-Stephens. Admission is $5; children under 12 get in free.

The main draw is a chili cook-off. Some 30 teams, vying for a number of awards, will offer samples on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Your idea of chili and my idea of chili might be quite different within Chili with a Kick's guidelines:

Chili is defined as any kind of meat or combination of meats (or vegetables) cooked with chili peppers, various other spices and other ingredients. So, that means beans and other fillers are allowed and encouraged! Vegetarian Chili entries are welcome!

Also on the schedule: a jalepeno eating competition that begins at 2 p.m. Because I thought they were entertaining, I stuck the rules on the jump (no lining the inside of your mouth with protective coating!).

For the kids (big and little), there'll be a bounce house, face painting, baggo and kickball. Plus, there's music scheduled all day.

11 a.m.: Suburban Legend
noon: War Chief
1 p.m.: Echo Canyon
2:45 p.m.: Whale Fire
3:45: The Year of the Tiger
5 p.m.: DNR
6 p.m.: Elise Davis (and band)
7 p.m.: Falcon Scott
8 p.m.: Booyah! Dad

ALSO: Stickyz hosts a kick-off party on Fat Tuesday (Feb. 21) with music by Four on the Floor, Slick Norman, The Binary Marketing Show and Ezra Lbs. Starts at 6 p.m.

• Kat Robinson

Get your bowls — or muffin tins — ready for the 31st annual Soup Sunday coming up Feb. 19 in Little Rock and Feb. 26 in Springdale, sponsored by Arkansas Children's Hospital to benefit Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families.

Little Rock's event, 4-7 p.m. at the Embassy Suites on Financial Parkway, will feature soups, bread and desserts from Cotham's in the City, Capitol Bistro, Dave’s Place, Sushi Cafe, Chi's Dim Sum and Bistro, Dixie Cafe and other restaurants. There will also be a silent auction of such goodies as pottery; books by local authors Fred Williams, Ray Hanley, Grif Stockley and Chris Olsen; a casserole a month from Mary Twedt; Southwest Airlines tickets; jewelry, and more. The band Flying Balloon’O Brothers will perform. Tickets are $50 for the VIP Signature Soup Room, featuring Chef Peter Brave of Brave New Restaurant, as well as access to the main event; $20 for regular tickets, and $5 for children ages 5-12. Get them online or by calling 501-371-9678.

Springdale's event, 4-7 p.m. at the Northwest Arkansas Convention Center in Springdale, will feature soup from BHK Kafe, Bordino’s, Scarpino and Fish City Grill and other restaurants. Besides soup, there will be bread, cheese and desserts, including ice cream sundaes. The McFetridge Jazz Combo will perform.

Tickets are $20 before Feb. 24, $25 at the door. Tickets for kids under 12 are $5. Buy tickets online or by calling 479-927-9800.