Bryant Park festival features celeb chefs, shines spotlight on hunger in the city

In New York City many go hungry each day.

Two celebrity chefs — sharing recipes for fast, fresh and inexpensive food — shone a light on the pervasive issue of hunger Sunday at the annual Go Orange to End Hunger campaign sponsored by the city’s Food Bank.

As part of the effort, The Little Beet’s Franklin Becker and “Chopped” Grand Champion Madison Cowan whipped up arroz con pollo with chickpeas, quesadillas and coconut and black bean soup for a crowd of more than 50 people in Bryant Park.

“What would you do if an intruder broke into your house? You’d fight back,” Cowan told the crowd. “This is what we have to do with hunger. We have to fight it.”

The event, which included a scavenger hunt and information booths on how to eat healthy on a budget, aimed to educate people on the hunger and hardships some in this city face each day.

About 1.5 million New Yorkers depend on the Food Bank to eat, said the Food Bank’s Chief Development Officer Alyssa Herman.

“Sometimes, hunger can go unnoticed,” Herman said. “We want to engage New Yorkers, we want them to learn from this event. We want them to donate, volunteer, and advocate in order to help end hunger.”

Participants then ran off on a scavenger hunt throughout the city with prizes including tickets to the Food and Wine Festival and a “greatest hits” pastry set from Dominique Ansel of Cronut fame.

This was the latest in a series of efforts the Food Bank has hosted this month to raise awareness and funds in some of the city’s most iconic locations, including Yankee Stadium and the Empire State Building.