Leslie Schaller and Randi Settleman admit they may not love to cook, but when it comes to food, they are definitely connoisseurs. It’s one of the reasons the sisters, who work side-by-side at their family-owned business, Bond Distributing, couldn’t wait to co-chair this fall’s biggest culinary event featuring five of the nation’s most prominent Jewish chefs.
The Associated’s Keynote: A Culinary Experience will feature Michael Solomonov, the James Beard award-winning executive chef of Zahav in Philadelphia, Pati Jinich, host of the PBS show, Pati’s Mexican Table, Molly Yeh, Food Network star of Girl Meets Farm, and Yehuda Sichel, Baltimore-born executive chef at Abe Fisher. Guests will enjoy kosher renditions of their recipes and participate in a discussion led by cookbook author Joan Nathan.
Why did you get involved?
Leslie: When they brought this idea to me, I thought it was perfect. I love the idea of incorporating good food and good beer with a good cause.
Randi: This year’s Keynote is out of the ordinary. I think food appeals to everyone.
Leslie: Food is so central to our Jewish identity. What makes this event unique is that we are showcasing culinary talents who are Jewish. They will talk about how their Jewish upbringing inspired them and helped bring their cooking to life.
How does food intersect with Judaism in your home?
Randi: It seems like whenever we celebrate Jewish holidays there is always great food that we bond over.
Have you eaten at Zahav?
Leslie: My husband Joe and I were lucky enough to dine at Zahav. Not only did we eat from his tasting menu – I tried the short ribs which he is making for the event – but I met him and he told me how excited he was to be part of our evening.
What’s it like co-chairing with your sister?
Leslie: We are used to collaborating at work and Keynote will be a labor of love.
Randi: It’s awesome to go to work every day with my best friend.
Why The Associated?
Leslie: It was important to my parents that Randi and I understood the value of giving back and incorporating our Jewish identity in every phase of our lives. Over the years, I’ve hosted several Associated events and even had the special experience of traveling on The Associated family mission to Israel.
I know that growing up in Baltimore’s tight-knit Jewish community, it’s sometimes lost on the Jewish population how small the greater, worldwide Jewish population is and how much they need us. There are Jews in our own backyard who need our help.
Randi: Jewish people need to take care of one another. I feel we can only rely on our own. We must support The Associated so we can all thrive together.
If you could have dinner with anyone who would that be?
Randi: My grandparents. I want to experience the mutual joy of their meeting my children and discussing the success of our family business over the last 40 years.
Leslie: I couldn’t agree more with Randi’s answer and would only, at this point, add my father. We miss him terribly and as ‘an eater,’ Keynote this year would undoubtedly be his all-time favorite Associated event.
Keynote will be held on Nov. 13. For more information, go to associated.org/keynote.
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