CharityHershey Bears

Hershey Bears Wives & Girlfriends Cooking Up Success

When I heard that the Bears Wives & Girlfriends were putting together a cookbook to raise funds for the Penn State Children’s Hospital, it seemed worth a look.  As a group, the HW&G tend to be well-organized and well-connected.  Their charity efforts are always in high demand when they set up shop in section 119 at Giant Center – Valentine’s weekend, their “Grab a Puck” bags sold out in 13 minutes.

The Cover of the 2011-2 Hershey Bears Cookbook (Content Credit: HW&G)

The books went on sale last Saturday, and the concept was intriguing enough that I stopped by to pick one up before the game.  Recipes from Bears and former-Bears (going back up to 20 years), with a whole slew of different ethnic backgrounds?  There was bound to be something interesting inside.

It was a few days before I had a chance to crack it open, but color me pleasantly surprised.  The W&G have again done a fantastic job with a project, 140 pages filled with both recipes and common sense cooking notes.  While all recipes came from the players, Cristina Mink (the organizational force behind the cookbook, though perhaps best known for her jewelry work via BellaMink) acknowledged that many came from hockey moms as much as the hockey players themselves.  Unsurprisingly, the dessert section has more entries than any other.

The cookbooks will be on sale this coming weekend as the Bears play their final home games of the regular season.  They’re $20, and proceeds will be going to the Penn State Children’s Hospital.  A total of 800 were printed (200 for this past weekend, another 600 available as of  April 7).  If you have a chance, stop by the table in section 119 and take a look.  There’s some fun content, the money goes to a great cause, and a lot of work went into pulling the books together.

Contributors Include (but are not limited to)…

Current Bears:

Keith Aucoin (honorary, since he’s in Washington until the Caps finish their season) – Chicken Pot Pie

Chris Bourque (AHL Scoring Leader, by 17 points) – Rigatoni “Nonna”, Shrimp Scampi, Cheesy Mac & Cheese, American Chop Suey (clearly, he likes his pasta)

Andrew Carroll – Pepperoni Garlic Knots

Cody Eakin (on recall to Washington) – Pierogi Bacon Casserole

Kyle Greentree – Death By Garlic; Polish Casserole

Tomas Kundratek – Traditional Czech Garlic Soup; Skillet BBQ Chicken Pasta; Czech Crepes Filled w/ Berries & Cream (I’ll be honest, all of his contributions looked good)

Patrick McNeill –  PMac had an entry in just about every category – Johnny McNeill’s Pork Chili, .

Graham Mink – Peanut Butter Blossoms, Ricotta Cookies

Matt Pope (also listed on the South Carolina Stingrays‘ Playoff Roster) – Baked S’mores, Fruit Salsa with Baked Cinnamon Chips, Ham & Cheese Sliders

Ryan Potulny (AHL Player of the Week)- Turkey Chili

Joel Rechlicz (Hershey Bears AHL Man of the Year, also leading the league in PIM with 237) – Kung “Pow” Chicken

Patrick Wellar – Porcupines (modified meatball & rice dish)

Former Bears:

Karl Alzner – Maple Mustard Glazed Chicken, Fudge Walnut Brownies (sadly, no cupcake recipes)

Jay Beagle – Sweet Potato Burritos

John Carlson – Crab Cakes & Baby Greens with Lemon Vinaigrette

Frederic Cassivi (2006 Calder Cup winning Goalie, who filled in Tuesday morning for Matt Tendler) – Beef, Macaroni & Tomatoes

Eric Fehr – BBQ Chicken (Texas Style)

Alexandre Giroux – Stuffed Salmon

Andrew Gordon – Moroccan Stewed Chicken

Dave Steckel – Cheesy Potatoes

Brian Willsie – “Baby Shower Punch;” Baked Penne with Chicken, Broccoli, & Smoked Mozzarella; Banana, Nutella Crepes

Coaches, Trainers, et al:

Mark French (Head Coach): Quick & Easy (Mark) French Toast Casserole, Butter Tarts

Justin Kullman (Equipment Manager) – Poppy Seed Chicken

Troy Mann (Assistant Coach) – Troy Mannicotti (the coach name puns, they are bad), Chinese Spare Rib Sauce

Dan “Beaker” Stuck (Head Trainer) – Chicken Diva, Pear Salad, among other things – he also contributed to just about every section of the book.

Sample Pages (Content Credit: 2011-2 Hershey Bears Cookbook, HW&G)
Sample Pages (Dessert, A Popular Topic) (Content Credit: 2011-2 Hershey Bears Cookbook, HW&G)

M. Richter

Em is a fan of hockey first and individual teams second, with geographical ties that cross the NHL. She was born in the Midwest, raised along the East Coast, and graduated from a university in Western Canada. A firm believer in context above all else, and a card-carrying on-ice official with USA Hockey, she splits her time between the big picture and the details. When not covering the AHL and ECHL for Caps Outsider, her photography can be found on Behance and Flickr. She also occasionally chimes in about the Hershey Bears on the Power Play Post Show.

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