Picnics are a wonderful way to uncork your mind when it feels bottled and buried in dust. Just this past Thursday I found myself called to revolt from my desk chair and join a celebration of the last nice day of summery weather in Brooklyn. Kristenrallied the troops and planned an outdoor lunch at Fort Greene Park; those of us on the list fell into line with tasty provisions at our sides.

I needed the break. I’ve been spending obscene amounts of time in front of my computer lately, mostly in the pursuit of finely edited video files. I’ve got a new video today that has long been in the pipeline. You may have seen the other videos I made about the IACP annual conference in Portland this past April, but this one speaks to a cause that is as dear to me as marriage equality and pretzels. There is a committee within IACP dedicated to teaching kids to cook, it is the aptly named “Kids in the Kitchen” committee. On the final day of the conference, the Kids in the Kitchen committee held an event at a local church. The invitation to cook alongside IACP chefs was put out to Portland youth. After learning the ins and outs of meatball making and whipped cream whipping, the food was served to local Portlanders in need. The event put a socially conscious bow on a week of lavish eating and drinking. When a city goes out of its way to host a decadent conference, why not take the last day of our celebration and give back to the host? Would you dare show up to a dinner party empty handed and not even offer to clean the dishes?

Which leaves us with this video. Kids in the kitchen, cooking, laughing, smiling and serving their community. It leaves me full on many levels.

The recipe today is dedicated to Tricia, my dear compatriot in the picnic trench this week. I made sushi(haphazardly and un-purposely, the market was out of the rice paper necessary to make Spring rolls), and the dipping sauce turned out to be spectacular. Citrus, ginger, soy, honey and some chili paste, it will make a fiery marinade for chicken and is a smashing simmering sauce for rice noodles.

Tricia promised to make it in large quantities so she could always have some on hand. Well? Go on girl! Get started!