Annual Appeal

10+ Photos from Making Truffles with Chef Mike

Attendees learned about the valuable support CCS provides and took home a box of homemade truffles.

By
Maggie Barrows
February 21, 2023
A man in a chef hat and jacket helps three people in aprons and chef hats make truffles.

On February 13, Columbia's Chef Mike—Michael DeMartino, the executive chef for campus dining—led a truffle-making lesson at The Forum to encourage more donor support for Columbia Community Service (CCS). Chef Mike and Columbia Dining, longtime supporters of the program, wanted to share their enthusiasm and encourage more donations. Budding cooks participated in a hands-on demonstration of the process, working from Chef Mike's personal truffle recipe and taking home a box of handmade truffles in time for Valentine's Day.

Prior to the lesson, participants heard from Isaac Adlerstein, executive director at Broadway Community, Inc., a longtime CCS grantee that provides hot meals, a food and produce pantry, medical services, clothing distribution, and other necessities to the Morningside Heights community. Participants were encouraged to make a contribution to CCS in order to help support Broadway Community and other organizations that receive CCS grants.

A card that says "Recipe: Chef Mike's Chocolate Truffles" leaning against a white chef's hat. The card lists the ingredients and equipment to make truffles.
A man wearing glasses leans against a counter with cooking implements on it and speaks into a microphone.
A man in a chef hat and coat speaks while standing behind a counter with cooking supplies and tools on it.
Two women in aprons and chef hats smile at the camera. One is holding up a recipe card.
A man in a chef hat pours chocolate into a bowl.
Participants in the event watch Chef Mike, and a close-up of his work bench is visible on screens.
Chef Mike smiles at the camera while he cooks.
Chef Mike shows participants how to form truffles from a sheet tray of chocolate.
Two women in hats and aprons watch as a child uses an ice cream scoop to scoop up chocolate from a tray.
A woman in a chef had and young man in an apron show off their truffles for the camera.
One person in a chef hat feeds another person in a chef hat a truffle.
A box of handmade truffles being closed.

Columbia Community Service grants are funded by donations from faculty, staff, and retirees at Columbia, Barnard, and Teachers College. Give today to help support this year's grants to organizations that provide vital social services, fill educational gaps, support the arts, and combat hunger in Harlem and Morningside Heights.