Food and Fashion for Women with a Passion

It's hard to believe tomorrow is October 1st. Where did the year go? Of course October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I helped kick it off this week at a Women's Wine Club dinner at Saks Fifth Avenue in Fort Myers, FL. Brilliant move to hold women captive in the cocktail dress department, with cocktails in hand.

Its was quite an effort with Saks moving out racks of dresses to make room for dinner tables draped in pink; the staff from Cru rolling in racks of appetizers; the staff from Bistro 41 bringing in the main course, dessert and cases of wine for each course. We dined on delicious cheeses, Spicy Tuna with basil watermelon relish, Jumbo Blue Crab with hearts of palm salad, spice rubbed smoked Lamb Top Round with smashed purple potatoes and wilted field green, flaky apple turnovers with vanilla bean ice cream and a lime infused honey drizzle, all beautifully plated and paired expertly with wines from around the world. (Spanish bubbly, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Chardonnay, Chilean Carmenere and Santa Barbara Riesling)

Saks provided a short fashion show, we learned what the Susan G Komen Foundation is up to locally, were given encouraging statistics about the breast cancer battle and raised some money to kick off the month long awareness campaign. There are so many events to benefit Komen and products being sold in the name of this campaign. It's easy to get blinded by the PINK this time of year. Do your due diligence and make sure the events you support and products you buy really do give back to Komen and give back in a substantial way.

This event was a perfect storm: a location with a passion for fashion, chefs with a passion for food, an organization with a passion for saving lives and women with a passion for all of it.