Smile Train Ambassador, Danica Sotto-Pingris, shares holiday recipes with supporters during culinary fundraiser
MANILA – With lanterns of different shapes and sizes beginning to light up the streets of Manila, and Christmas carols starting to play, one could say that the Yuletide season is just around the corner. While the upcoming holiday is usually associated by breaks in both school and at work, it is also known as the season for festive dining and giving.
In celebration of the season of giving, Smile Train Philippines took the opportunity to marry the joy of feasting with the spirit of giving as the world’s leading cleft charity hosted a culinary class with their Ambassador, Danica Sotto-Pingris.
Dubbed “Spread Smiles This Holiday”, the afternoon cooking affair sought to teach the participants fun and exciting dishes they could easily prepare for their different reunions with their loved ones. Proceeds from the class will benefit Smile Train’s local programs in the Philippines. Apart from the monetary donation, participants were able to interact with some of Smile Train’s former cleft patients, as they learned more about the organization and its vision.
“We know that the holidays are all about giving and enjoying good food with friends and family. And we thought what better way to bring people together other than a cooking class. We were so honored to have one of our celebrity ambassadors, Danica Sotto-Pingris lead the culinary class. In doing so, we were able to raise funds and awareness for Smile Train and children living with untreated clefts,” said Kimmy Coseteng-Flaviano, Country Director for Smile Train Philippines. She adds, “This was a remarkable event where participants could share the dishes they learned how to make and live out the spirit of giving.”
Sotto-Pingris hosted the culinary class and taught participants how to make four full dishes: mixed greens with candied walnuts, tortilla crisps with avocado mango salsa, chicken parmigiana, and chocolate peppermint panna cotta.
The class took place at Back of the House in Xavierville Avenue, Quezon City and was sponsored by Glad. This project is a part of Glad’s corporate social responsibility program, Glad-To-Give. Now on its second year, Glad-To-Give Smiles aims to raise awareness about Smile Train and generate support for its programs in the country.
To learn more about Smile Train, please follow them on Facebook (facebook.com/SmileTrainPhilippines), and on Instagram @SmileTrainPH (https://www.instagram.com/smiletrainph/).