GENEVA – Pat Hofstetter is gearing up to win best display at the Geneva Chamber of Commerce’s fourth annual 60 Men Who Cook fundraiser.



Hofstetter, owner of CPR Printing in St. Charles, won best display two years ago for his Mardi Gras theme, then again last year when he dressed like the singer Meatloaf, served meatloaf and created a dashboard for “Paradise by the Dashboard Light.”



“I am looking for a three-peat,” Hofstetter said.



Hofstetter’s entry this year is clam chowder.



“My mother made clam chowder for me when I was a kid,” Hofstetter said. “The secret ingredient is salt pork instead of bacon.”



The event is at 6 p.m. Friday at the Kane County Fairgrounds, 525 S. Randall Road, St. Charles, and will benefit the Geneva Lions Club and the Rotary Club of Geneva. Tickets are $30 at the door or at the Geneva History Center, 113 S. Third St.; The Paper Merchant, 328 S. Third St.; and State Street Jewelers, 214 W. State St. Tickets also are available at the Geneva Chamber of Commerce, 8 S. Third St., but the chamber will be closed Friday to set up for the event.



“We actually have 62 men who are cooking,” chamber spokeswoman Laura Rush said. “Attendees will sample hors d’oeuvres, main dishes, side dishes and desserts made by men they know in the community.”



Attendees can vote for their favorites in each category and best display, with all the proceeds going to the charities. Rush said people can vote online without attending the event.



The tickets include food tastings, voting and entertainment. The event also includes a cash bar and raffle.



Cooks include two youths – fifth-grader Bennett Melone from Fox Ridge Elementary School in St. Charles, who is making “Grandma’s Homemade Fudge,” and Tommy Antonson, a fourth-grader from Harrison Street School in Geneva, who will bring “Tommy’s Twisted Temptations.”



Various cooks have come up with catchy names for their entries, such as Justin Eggar, owner of Eggar All State Insurance in Geneva, who is making “Sexy Stuffed Mushrooms,” his original recipe.



“Stuffed mushrooms are just fun,” Eggar said. “They are somewhat healthy, but that cream cheese and sausage filing, it tastes pretty good.”



Kane County Chronicle Publisher J. Tom Shaw is making “Market Dip.”



“The Kane County Chronicle is pleased to support Geneva by participating in events like this,” Shaw said.



Rush said volunteers who participate have to do a lot of work.



“They have to make 200 samples without it getting gross,” Rush said.



But first-timer Charlie Miller from Miller Lawn & Snow in St. Charles is willing to take on the challenge, making “Garden Pasta Salad” from his mom’s recipe.



“I use bow-tie pasta, and I’m chopping the vegetables up – like zucchini and carrots,” Miller said. “It’s a good way to be active in the community, and it’s for a good cause.”

60 Men Who Cook

The event takes place at 6 p.m. Friday at the Kane County Fairgrounds, 525 S. Randall Road, St. Charles. Tickets are $30. For information, visit www.genevachamber.com.