Judith Henderson’s Wine & Country Living

During the week I talked to a representative for actor Jeff Bridges' food program, No Kid Hungry. This non-profit has done something different, partnering with several "good-for-you-food" companies who together donate their profits in sales to American kids who don't get enough to eat each day.

It's an alarming statistic, really, just how many kids are not getting enough to eat today. As the numbers and the US regions in concern were brought to my attention, I kept thinking about the 1950's and early 60's, the last time American donations fed the starving Ozark and Blue Mountain communities. This was right as the Civil Rights move- ment of the 60's got underway. I was a fourteen year old girl and innocently thought our donations had all but stamped out starvation in America. However, with the beginning of the Viet Nam War and the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy taking precedence as it should, the starvation issue in America was put on the back burner, until today.

This century, it should be noted that the need to feed people in America is being met by a generation of folks who see the value in whole foods served to the hungry, not just empty calories. Both the Paul Newman and No Kid Hungry programs are based on feeding those less fortunate with organic whole foods with volunteers who see that the foods donated are placed in the hands of those who really need it, not an organization that needs to first pay its organizers.

The next time a recipe calls for dried fruit, you might try an Ocean Spray dried fruit product and support No Kid Hungry. Or, sauce your next pasta dish with a Newman's Own bottled sauce. Both products belong to foods of a higher standard and their profits help feed Americans in need.

I made an "adult" trail mix recipe, pairing it with the delicious Glencorrie 2009 Cuvee Marquis, just $45 in the tast- ing room. By the way, the new Glenncorrie Winery tasting room is now open in downtown Walla Walla, at the corner of Rose and Second Street, 509 525 2588.

Wine tasting notes for the Glenncorrie 2009 Cuvee Mar- quis are as follows: nose buried deep in the glass, a profu- sion of ripe blackberries opens the senses. With a swirl of the glass and first sip; the mouth floods in regal tannins, 21 months of complex French/American oak, while a squiggle of cab franc perfumes the nostril. At finish, suave saddle leather rides the tongue, scattered in a crack of fresh black pepper.

Readers, until next week, "Eat Art, Drink Imagination!"

Alfresco Trail Mix

1-cup each: dried cherries, golden raisins, figs, blueber- ries, crystallized ginger, walnuts, pumpkin seeds ¼-teaspoon each: coarse salt, red pepper flakes, allspice, orange zest, paired with a bottle of 2009 Glencorrie Cuvee Marquis.

Hear Judith Speak at: www.chefjudithhenderson.com.