Cooking Up Support for Girls, Inc.
- by Guest
Lasheeda Perry putting the finishing touches on her Napoleon
Part of Bon Appétit’s goal of “food service for a sustainable future” includes giving back to the communities in which we operate in a variety of ways.
That’s why back in July, 13 middle school girls in the Girls, Inc. summer program visited the Bon Appétit team at LinkedIn on a field trip. This wonderful nonprofit gives girls the right tools and support to succeed, including connecting them with trained professionals who mentor and guide them in a safe, girls-only environment; peers who share their drive and aspirations; and research-based programming.
As part of their visit, the girls “cooked it up” with Bon Appétit Pastry Chef Lasheeda Perry and learned to make a healthy dessert: chocolate avocado mousse. Post-cooking class, everyone participated in a hoola-hooping competition and had a blast. Several of the young girls left the Mountain View, CA, campus that day saying “Thank you, Lasheeda, for being a good role model for me.”
Lasheeda and her assistant Anna Zulaica at the Girls, Inc event
Thanks to that connection, Girls, Inc. reached back out to Lasheeda to invite her to be a featured chef for its 1st annual fundraiser dinner, Taste, last Saturday, September 13, 2014. Lasheeda and her assistant, Health & Wellness Marketing Manager Anna V. Zulaica — known as “Food Gal” at LinkedIn — jumped at the opportunity, working alongside acclaimed female chefs, pastry chefs, and restaurateurs of the Bay Area. Lasheeda’s dessert was to be part of the live auction. She created a twist on a Napoleon, combining chocolate hazelnut, mango, and caramel, and it was auctioned off twice!
A total of $10,000 was donated to Girls, Inc. because of Lasheeda’s beautiful dessert. She was thrilled that doing the thing she loves allowed her to help an organization doing such powerful work.
Submitted by Anna V. Zulaica, Health & Wellness Marketing Manager