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Friday April 4, 1997

Kosher class: fish napoleons to filled almond florentines

JANET SILVER GHENT
Bulletin Staff

Jeffrey Hamilton, 12, sat on a stool criss-crossing baby carrots on top of asparagus spears. The vegetables garnished plates where salmon and sturgeon were layered napoleon-style with potatoes atop a fish velouté.

Behind him, in the kitchen of Oakland's Temple Beth Abraham, servers called out special orders.

"I need three more vegetarians," said one, as Jeffrey's father, Edward, brought out dishes of portobello mushrooms layered with sliced eggplant.

"One with no sauce," called another server. He returned to the kitchen moments later, saying, "Excuse me, he changed his mind. He wants vegetarian."

The Saturday night dinner at Beth Abraham, designed to demonstrate that kosher can be classy, was not a typical catered affair.

For one, the caterers at the fourth annual fund-raiser last month were the Hamiltons. Edward is chairman of City College of San Francisco's hotel restaurant program and is a private chef during the summers at the Bohemian Grove retreat. About 18 of his students were volunteering their time as servers and cooks at the synagogue event.

Edward had catered many kosher affairs in the Catskills and New York City before meeting his wife, who is Jewish.

"He grew up in New York. He knows more about [kashrut] than me," said his wife, Paula, who was food editor of the Oakland Tribune for 10 years and is the author of two cookbooks.

In addition to serving as an apprentice sous-chef and food stylist, Jeffrey is preparing for his June bar mitzvah at Beth Abraham. The dinner was an all-volunteer effort, with congregants decorating tables with Middle Eastern edibles, garlanding the social hall's pillars and peeling potatoes and carrots and shucking corn.

Part of the agenda was to raise funds for the synagogue, which is celebrating its 90th year. In fact, the event brought in some $10,000. But even more important, according to Rabbi Mark Diamond and fund-raising chair Eileen Moore, was the hidden agenda: letting people know that kosher cookery can be elegant and sophisticated.

The event was the rabbi's brainchild, growing out of discussions he had with the Hamiltons.

"Four years ago, he challenged us," said Paula. "A lot of people come to kosher food not from a view of abundance.

"They think of all the things they can't have, rather than celebrating all the wonderful things they can have," she added.

"Absolutely," Diamond agreed. "A lot of people think kosher dining can't be a special culinary experience. This event shows people that it can."

Meanwhile in the social hall, some 140 synagogue members and guests, many in black tie, enjoyed a meal that began with such appetizers as stuffed grape leaves, hummus and baba ganoush (the latter prepared by Jeffrey), followed by corn timbales with fresh spinach and tomato coulis. The finale was almond florentine shells filled with black and white chocolate mousse and garnished with strawberry fans and mint leaves.

"This is the best," said Larry Miller of Piedmont, who finished his dessert as well as his wife's.

Creating the florentine shells on the preceding Thursday was a four-person operation. The next day, the mousses were prepared. Synagogue members pitched in.

"I peeled potatoes and I cut up cauliflower, arranging all the bread on the table, and it was totally fun," said committee member Deborah Sosebee.

The rabbi added: "Even cutting vegetables under Paula and Edward's supervision is a privilege."

The event, with ticket prices ranging from $70 to $500, yields other bonuses, he said.

"It brings together a cross-section of Temple Beth Abraham: the younger members, the older members and benefactors. It's truly a wonderful opportunity to bring together our community...This is one of the premier events that brings out everybody."

Said fund-raising chair Moore: "Over and above the fund-raising, it's a social occasion. And it shows that within the boundaries of kashrut, you're able to have gourmet food."

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