Saturday, November 4, 2017 marks the 23rd Cowboys Against Cancer Benefit and Banquet, which raises money to provide grants for Sweetwater County residents who are receiving cancer treatment. Cowboys Against Cancer is an all-volunteer organization, with no paid staff.
Among these volunteers is a unique group of people who have supported Cowboys Against Cancer for seventeen years, yet they are not eligible to receive any benefit from the organization simply because they are not residents of Sweetwater County. This group of individuals is the tremendous team of chefs and cooks.
Each year a group of 30 or more chefs and cooks from throughout the intermountain region travel to Sweetwater County, at their own expense, to provide five star appetizers, meals, and desserts to a crowd of upwards of 900 people. These culinary experts dedicate their time and talent to Cowboys Against Cancer from Friday through Sunday.
This year the chefs and cooks will travel from Montana, Utah, Colorado, Nevada and Oklahoma. They will prepare a unique culinary experience for those in attendance at the Benefit and Banquet. President and Founder of Cowboys Against Cancer, Margaret Parry, said, “This is an amazing story of dedicated chefs and cooks who volunteer their time and effort to help us raise tremendous amounts of money for the cancer patients of Sweetwater County and we are truly grateful that they selflessly devote their time, energy and talents to be a part of this event.â€
Chef Michael Nook is the Head Chef for the event and leads the amazing culinary team in creating unique entrees and special desserts which have included such delights as: roast pork with pickled peach relish; BBQ enhanced prime rib with sweet and spicy balsamic glaze and bacon jam; and roast striploin of beef with mustard amber ale beer sauce, this year’s entrée. Chef Nook, in his seventeenth year with Cowboys Against Cancer, is one of the original team of chefs to be a part of the event and continues to be one of the main influences encouraging other chefs to join this unique group of individuals. In addition to Chef Nook, there are a number of chefs participating this year who were a part of the original team. Nicholas and Company, a family owned food distributor based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and its vendors donate most of the food for the chef’s preparation. “The teamwork of the chefs, cooks, Nicholas and Company, and its vendors provides a special accent to Cowboys Against Cancer’s Benefit and Banquet for which, we are deeply appreciative,†said Margaret Parry.
