Chef Egg Abroad: Day 7

by emma.whelan, November 21, 2011 | Permalink

South Camp, Sharm El Sheik, Egypt

Today was a travel day. We got up at 5:30 am under the desert sun, grabbed some breakfast from the mess hall, said our goodbyes and rolled out to the airfield. It was here that we boarded a 26 seat box plane called the ‘Sherpa”. We flew 90 minutes at 10,000 feet to south of Sinai. Our destination was Sharm el Sheik, MFO South Camp on the Arabian Peninsula. We came to find out the “Sharm” as it is referred to, is a beach resort town for tourists from the UK, Europe and Russia. Picture a smaller, Middle Eastern version of Cancun, complete with casinos, dance clubs, hookah bars and even a Chili’s Restaurant.

 The South Camp is located directly on the Red Sea and has a great view of the water. The really great thing about this camp is that a majority of the soldiers are from Maryland. They are mostly National Guard from Silver Spring, Dundalk and Fredrick. We have been talking to guys from Baltimore City, Essex, Dundalk, P Town, Towson, Perry Hall, Westminster and Owings Mills. They cannot believe that chefs from Baltimore are here and cooking for them. To say they are appreciative of our food and company would be an understatement. Most agree that the cheerleader show is cool but that our food is better.

With a small tour of the mess hall, we got organized for the next day. Our host, Mike told us to get showered and shaved for a trip into town for dinner. As we rolled through multiple security checks he filled us in on what to expect in the small town of Na’ama, about a 5 minute drive from the base.

 My fellow chefs and Mike dined at great Lebanese restaurant called Faruse. We paid about $25 or 175 L.E. (Egyptian Pounds) for a never ending mezzo dinner of Hummus, Babaganush, falafel, dolmas, some weird fish in yogurt sauce, fried lamb fritters, really good cheese dumplings, an amzing salad of cucumber, celery, olives, tomato and fried pita pieces and finished it off with a tasty grilled haloumi and pita sandwich. That was just the first course, next came the kabob platter with grilled beef, chicken, ground lamb kafta and charred onion, zucchini, tomato and hot peppers. We finished off the meal with a fruit plate and hot tea.

 After the meal, we toured the town and saw that the place had filled with tourist, lights, aromas and energy. Everywhere we turned was a new sight, hookah bar, performance and gift shop. We had to be back at he base early but were promised a really wild time later on our trip. As we rode back to the base we took a tour of Old Sharm which is an older version of Na’ama and had a little more of the old world character. We even saw a camel walking through the throngs of tourist. After a short drive we were back at the base and got right in bed to get some much needed sleep. Tomorrow we have to wake up and prepare our final meal for the troops.

 Signing Off, Chef Egg!

Chef Egg Abroad: Day 5 & 6

by emma.whelan, November 17, 2011 | Permalink

Off to North Camp

With the amazing time we had last night at the Maadi House I got very little sleep. But this morning started off really early with a van ride to the MFO ( Multinational Forces and Observers) North Camp in Sinai, Egypt. This section of Middle East is an annex between Egypt, Israel and Saudi Arabia about 20 miles from the Gaza Strip. It is said they can have very interesting security situations from time to time. The North Camp is a conglomeration of 1400 soldiers’ form 14 different nations ranging from the U.S., New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, Canada, Italy and Colombia.

After 3 hours of riding we switched out of our vans into the care of MFO peacekeepers. The gentlemen driving us for the next 2 hours gave us a history of the land and their responsibilities to all of the nations in the area. Basically it is their job to observe the area and keep the peace between the three governments.

Our van made a quick stop at a small armory to pick up weapons. This is when things got real in the field! This is the point that we all had to put on our flack jackets and be debriefed on security precautions. After 30 minutes we arrived at the North Camp in the afternoon and were given a quick tour of our surrounding by several Canadian soldiers. We were finally brought to the kitchen where we would be serving a dinner for the troops. Our team of chefs were introduced to the contracted kitchen managers which were another wild bunch of ex-pats from the UK. After a quick tour we got whisked to the local bar of which there are many, for some local hospitality.

We had some really good times and then it was off to bed for the night.

The chefs woke up early in the morning had some breakfast and coffee and got right to work. Mission for the day was to prepare dinner for 200 soldiers and serve them before the big cheerleader show.

The kitchen staff welcomed us with open arms. We were able to give them a few tips on how to improve the quality and efficiency of there food service. I was in charge of slicing, dicing al of the fruits and vegetables and preparing the homemade mango salsa. Sarah was responsible for specialty dishes like the Mediterranean pasta salad and fresh guacamole. Chef Stretch made his patented spicy wings, marinated fish and cole slaw for the fish tacos.

The evening came and the soldiers pigged out. They absolutely loved the food and hospitality. The best part of the day was going around to the tables and talking the servicemen and women. There were a lot of Whole Foods Market fans that could not believe that we were participating in theses types of events. I assured them that this was only the beginning. The appreciation and love they showed us was phenomenal and reciprocated.

The night ended with a guacamole contest between the chefs and kitchen managers and a special performance by the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders. The soldiers went ballistic over the ladies and cheered all night long. The ladies signed autographs and then we were escorted to the Odie bar. This is a shack in the middle of the camp that was setup with a bar, black lights and a huge video screen. We had a wild dance party, swapped stories with the soldier and had a great time.

I got to bed early for a 5:30 am wake up call for our journey the next day to Sharm el Shiek, Sinai Egypt.

Chef Egg

Chef Egg Abroad: Day 4

by emma.whelan, November 16, 2011 | Permalink

With a full day of food preparation behind us, we started off the day with a trip to the Egyptian Museum. We saw ancient relics, King Tuts tomb and real mummies. After lunch we made our way back to the Maadi House to prepare for our event in the evening.

Again, we were warmly welcomed by the staff and began to prepare for our evenings event. We got the fish and kabobs on the grill, assembled our salads and put the finishing touches on our taco and kabob dinner. As the guests started rolling in the sun started to set and we finally got the party started.

As the other chefs got the dinner on the line I started the event with a great mango salsa demonstration.. I was surrounded by families, ex pats, contractors and even a 2 star general ready to learn how to prepare a healthy and tasty dish. After a half hour of laughing and learning, everyone was able to ask questions and taste the final product. I have concluded that Egyptian mangoes are absolutely the largest and sweetest on the planet.

After everyone was served, all of the chefs rolled around the party introducing ourselves and talking with the guest.  It was great to speak with several families from parts of Maryland, Virginia and DC. The evening was closed out by a rousing performance by the Redskin Cheerleaders. The dancing, music and crowd participation got everyone in a great mood and we closed the night out answering questions, exchanging e mails and signing autographs for the kids. All of the guests were so appreciative that we came all this way to visit and spend our time with them. We had a blast and the dinner was a huge success.

The feedback from the military officials was very positive; they say that we exceeded expectations and are welcome back anytime. Tomorrow morning we are off to the North Camp for another event. I am really excited to see what unexpected surprises this leg of the journey brings us.

Signing off from Cairo, Chef Egg!

Chef Egg Abroad: Day 1and 2

by emma.whelan, November 14, 2011 | Permalink

“Time Warp”

Today was a long day. First I travelled from Baltimore to Atlanta. It was there that I met the two chefs that I will be travelling and working with for the next ten days. The first chef I met was Sarah Simmington from The Blue Moon Café in Baltimore. The next chef is a spikey-haired artist/chef/restaurateur from Kansas City name stretch. Word on the street is that this guy wears a cape when he cooks! I  can’t wait to see that!  Both chefs are veterans of the military tours and have just recently

 returned from a tour in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. They are in a group they have dubbed the “Mess Lords”, travelling chefs that like to throw down for the soldiers. Needless to say this crew is full of personality and really cool. I think we  are going to get a long just fine.

Plane Food!

The rest of the day ended up going by in haze of travel. (Read:  really bad airline food, free champagne (thanks Air France) and very little sleep.) Before I knew it, I was in Cairo, Egypt by way of Paris, France. It was 7 pm Cairo time. We got to the hotel just in time to meet the crew from the Washington Redskins Cheerleaders. This was a group of nine lovely ladies that cheer for the Skins and travel the world performing for the troops. They are all veterans who have been on similar tours and have really great spirit.

This was a really long day, a good day, but a long day. I am really excited to see what tomorrow brings.

Signing off from Cairo, Chef Egg.

The Adventures of Chef Egg in Egypt – Day Two

by emma.whelan, November 10, 2011 | Permalink

Our weary traveller, Chef Egg, has arrived in Egypt! While he catches up on his zzzz’s, here are some fabulous pictures he sent along to share with you all!

Whole Foods Market Silver Spring’s New Blog!

by emma.whelan, November 8, 2011 | Permalink

Greetings from Whole Foods Market Silver Spring!

Let us be the first to say Happy Holidays to you and your family. With so many wonderful things happening in our store and in the community, we felt it was necessary to create a space to celebrate and share these great times. We hope that you’ll find this blog a wonderful treasure trove of food, community and goodwill.

To start us off on this exciting journey, we have our own Chef Egg who left today for Eqypt! Don’t worry, folks, pictures are soon to come too!

Happy reading and thanks for checking out our new blog!

November 8, 2011      11:30am

My name is Chef Egg and this is the first blog of my trip to Egypt with Armed Forces Entertainment. However, this is not the beginning of the journey which began over two years ago.

I have been teaching cooking rehabilitation with wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington DC for about 3 years now. I teach soldiers, caregivers and medical professionals about the culinary art while giving them the life skills they need to care for themselves and there families. Needless to say this has been the highlight of my professional career.

Through some connections at the hospital I was introduced to the Armed Forces Entertainment organization. This is the group that sends musicians, comedians, actors, speakers and professional sports teams to entertain the troops and their families while abroad. I know a couple of local bands that have toured with AFE and they said it was a life changing experience.

Over the course of two years I have been trying to put a cooking program together with AFE and Whole Foods Market. I have made hundreds of phone calls and emails, and have had meetings with high ranking officials from both the military and Whole Foods Market. When the opportunity came up to share the Whole Foods Market message with the military and their families abroad, I jumped at the chance.

With a butterflies in my stomach I am about to embark on a whirlwind trip from Baltimore to Atlanta to Paris and finally ending up in Cairo Egypt. I am traveling with a Baltimore chef named Sara Simmington of the Blue Moon Café and a chef from from St. Louise named “Stretch”. We will be joined in Cairo by the Redskins Cheerleaders. The mission is to travel to several U.S. bases throughout the country to bring a little bit of home, abroad.

We are going to teach and entertain soldiers, officers and families about cooking, healthy eating and how these skills can benefit the whole family. The group is also going to get a chance to experience local cuisines, culture, customs, people and landmarks. I am very excited about having the opportunity to explore this historical region and see destinations like the great pyramids, the Sphinx and the Nile River.

While on my travels I plan on sharing pictures and stories through this blog. I encourage you to spread the word of this journey while we spend time with the hardworking men, women and families of the U.S. military during this season if giving and thanks!

Next stop, Egypt!

Chef Egg

Grill Sausage for Memorial Day

by emma.whelan, May 24, 2011 | Permalink

Grill Sausage for Memorial Day

by Alana Sugar, May 23rd, 2011 | Permalink | Email this