The Knife Guys

My wife was approached via email by Hadassah to participate in Almost Chopped The 2nd Helping.  It appears to be spot on with regards to where current medical research is beginning to make significant headways into breakthrough therapy to cure both hereditary and acquired neurological diseases:  such as,  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis‎ (Lou Gehrig's Disease), Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s Disease, and Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  As a physician, I am painfully aware of the devastation that the hereditary neurological diseases bring to families of which Jewish families are particularly vulnerable to having the genes:  Types 2 and 3 Gaucher Disease, Niemann-Pick Disease Types A and B, Tay-Sachs Disease, familial dysautonomia, spinal muscular atrophy, Canavan Disease, Mucolipidosis type IV, Torsion dystonia, and Parkinson's Disease. Of interest,  there  are now three effective therapies for both Gaucher Disease Type 1 (but not for Types 2 and 3) and possible cures for Spinal Muscular Atrophy. I  have a first cousin, who is currently bed ridden and dying from Multiple Sclerosis, another disease looking for a cure. In addition, my aunt, my uncle, and my mother died from dementia. So, I am also personally aware of both the emotional and financial burdens that it brings to the children of these patients. Unfortunately, a cure for Alzheimer's Disease is not here yet. Worse, it has become a money pit for many pharmaceutical companies and they have abandoned doing further research into a treatment or cure for it. Therefore, Hadassah's effort to raise funds to continue the search for an effective treatment and, hopefully, a cure for Alzheimer's Disease is even more pressing than before.

This should be a lot of fun for both the "chefs," as well as, the audience. I am only allowed to bring a fraction of my extensive kitchen knife collection to the event. However, that should not interfere with the slicing and dicing of the day. Hopefully, beets and popcorn will not be repeated as the surprise ingredients as they were last year. Do you know how hard it is to dice popcorn? So, be generous in your support of Hadassah's efforts to treat and cure neurological diseases and have a good time watching four teams of amateur chefs duke it out over hot skillets at Almost Chopped The 2nd Helping.  Of course, the Knife Guys will be a cut above the competition.