New York Times' Mark Bittman Makes Dinner for Mother Jones Magazine Photo credit: Sarah Kehoe
Last night Mother Jones, the political magazine founded in the 70's with a focus on investigative journalism, hosted a fundraiser at the Institute for Culinary Education. The New York Times' food writer Mark Bittman, who just completed the New York City Marathon two days earlier, hosted dozens of donors in the Institute's kitchen, where they cooked up a "minimalist" meal.

Bittman, who contacted the magazine after their issue last year on food security, spent the night mingling with admirers and Jones staffers while teaching them how to roll their own pasta and make their own casseroles with more greens than meat.

Meanwhile, Mother Jones' had a couple announcements of its own.

Jay Harris, publisher and CEO at the magazine for the last 19 years, announced last week that he was stepping down from his position. In the interim, his role as CEO will be filled by Steve Katz, while Madeleine Buckingham will step in as interim publisher.

Another former Mother Jones' publisher (and current AlterNet editor) Don Hazen was also at last night's event, as well as Charlie Kireker of Air America.

"When (left wing political magazine) Rampart folded in 1975, all the culture reporting went to Rolling Stone, and all the politics went to Mother Jones," Hazen told us. Fortunately, not all culture has disappeared from the non-profit magazine since it was founded in 1976, as last night's cooking party aptly proved that there's still a place for taste and fun in political journalism.