Renaissance chefs are stirring. As the aroma of their creations wafts through the streets of Bangor, these artists are tempering sauces, balancing colors and whisking up wonders as they prepare to tantalize your palate.

Dueling chefs will unveil their donated dishes at a taste-off competition at Go Gala For Kids’ Sake Oct. 4 at Norumbega Hall in Bangor. For Kids’ Sake is a nonprofit resource for divorcing or separating parents, teaching how to keep their children out of the middle of conflict.

At the benefit gala, guests will select winners in 10 categories in Bangor’s first hors d’oeuvres competition. They will also dance to music of The Skyliners and bid on silent and live auction items presented by auctioneer Dick Catelle and master of ceremonies Ric Tyler, news anchor of WLBZ Channel 2. Gov. John and Karen Baldacci will be guests of honor. Gov. Baldacci will give brief remarks at 8 p.m. on the importance of parent education for divorcing families.

Competitors are Chocolate Grille, Guinness & Porcelli’s, Momma B’s Kitchen, New Moon, Oriental Jade, The Lion, Thistle’s, and culinary students from Bangor Job Corps Center and Eastern Maine Community College.

The hors d’oeuvres taste-off will allow Bangor’s culinary artists to mount an exhibit of talents you could never order from a menu.

“You can pow it up a little bit. It’s a whole new theater – a whole new stage,” says Jerry Baldacci, chef at Momma B’s Kitchen on Hammond Street.

At New Moon on Park Street, chef Roger Gelis gave a sly smile and allowed he has feelers out for a possible out-of-season ingredient for his surprise performance.

In the spirit of donating to a good cause, the Rave family at Thistle’s Restaurant is throwing caution to the winds and is planning an entry that spotlights a pricey ingredient.

Gala guests may be shouting “Encore! Encore!”

Santiago Rave, general manager of Thistle’s at Maliseet Gardens Plaza on Exchange Street, thinks of cooking as performance art.

Santiago’s father, chef Alejandro Rave, has been known to break from creating in the kitchen to play the piano or castanets in the dining room, much like his singing and dancing on the equivalent of Broadway in his native Argentina.

“Eating out is not just to fill your tummy,” says Santiago. “All the senses have to be experienced and played with.”

At Thistle’s, Alejandro Rave’s repertoire includes Latin, German, French, and Portuguese cuisines.

“Basically, we’ve brought the world to Bangor,” Santiago says.

But no travel was necessary for Bangor’s own Jerry Baldacci, who learned the tricks of the trade as a kid at his father’s restaurant, starting with scrubbing pots and pans and literally working his way up.

“I used to go down in the basement of the old Baltimore and play football until my grandmother would call down that there were dishes to do,” Baldacci reminisces.

Now that he runs his own popular restaurant, he enjoys experimenting.

Mark Wellman, a Bangor musician and marketing consultant, told Baldacci the other night while dining at Momma B’s, the sauce is great, but never the same twice.

“‘Mark, you’re a musician. When you play a song, you play it different every time,’ Baldacci recalls he told Wellman. “‘We’re both artists.'”

“That shut him up,” he says, chuckling.

In Baldacci’s case, the comparison is particularly apt. A large sketchpad with impeccably rendered pencil drawings sits on a table just inside Momma B’s back door, and a neat array of cookbooks and art books stands on the wide windowsill beside his informal studio.

Despite their grueling schedules and the pressure cooker of competition just days ahead, these culinary artists were willing to share winning ways with appetizers.

Buy the best ingredients and let them be what they are, advises Gelis of New Moon.

“Use a good clean blast of a couple flavors, not too much,” he says. “There are more courses coming.”

Gelis got his start washing dishes at his father’s “nothing fancy” bar and grill in West Virginia, but went on to culinary arts school in Portland, Ore. He uses a fusion of Pacific Rim flavors in his creations, such as his lobster-corn fritters with a jalapeno sauce. That sort of imaginative melding led to Where Atlanta naming Gelis outstanding seafood chef two summers ago.

Hors d’oeuvres should be two to three bites at the most, Gelis says.

“When you’re done eating it, you should say ooooh, I wish I had one more bite of that,” he says. “Get your mouth watering and looking forward to the next course.”

Tickets for Go Gala For Kids’ Sake are $25 and available by calling 942-0859. For Kids’ Sake classes are taught by psychologists and mental health professionals with expertise in child and family development. Training is held 8 a.m.-2 p.m. the second Saturday of each month in Bangor, and on the third Saturday in Bangor and Ellsworth as needed. The cost is $45; a reduced fee based on financial need is available. Preregistration is required by calling 942-9329.

Jerry Baldacci’s Bruschetta

Chef Jerry Baldacci grows basil on the windowsills of Momma B’s Kitchen for his Italian bruschetta. He recommends grilling the bread. “Authentics like to see the grill marks,” he says, but broiling is acceptable. The idea is to keep the bread from getting soggy.

Homemade Italian bread

Fresh basil pesto

Tomatoes

Mozzarella cheese

Slice bread and brush with butter. Grill. Remove grilled bread to a broiler pan and brush bread with pesto. Top with sliced or diced tomatoes and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Toast under broiler until cheese melts. Baldacci serves his bruschetta with a dish of marinara sauce for dipping.

*To make basic pesto: Mince 2 garlic cloves and 1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts in a food processor. Add and large-chop 2 cups fresh basil leaves. Medium-chop another 2 cups basil leaves. While processor is running, quickly add 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil and 1/2- 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Do not overprocess.

Black Jack Walnuts

Chef Roger Gelis of New Moon shared this recipe for an easy appetizer that goes well with drinks.

1/2 pound bag of walnuts

2 shots of Jack Daniels whiskey

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon bitters

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

Blanch walnuts, then flambe in a large saute pan with Jack Daniels. Add bitters and Worcestershire sauce, then add brown sugar and spices. Spread out on cookie sheet, toast in 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes.

Papaya Salsa

Chef Alejandro Rave of Thistle’s Restaurant likes to serve this salsa with grilled swordfish, but it complements other fish, too, such as fish kebabs on skewers.

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup papaya, diced small

1 jalapeno chile, minced

1/4 cup red onion, peeled and diced small

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Place orange juice in saucepan and heat to reduce the liquid to about 2 tablespoons. Allow juice to cool for a minute or two. Mix with all of the remaining ingredients and set aside until ready to use.

Go Gala For Kids? Sake

Where: Bangor?s Norumbega Hall

When: Saturday, Oct. 4

Price: For tickets ($25), call 942-0859.

Categories: Guests will select winning

hors d?oeuvres in these categories:

Wicked Good (Best use of Maine ingredients)

Just Like New York (Sophisticated and hip)

A Meal in Itself (Hearty and satisfying)

Sweet Surrender (No need to save room for dessert)

Can?t Eat Just One (Addictively delicious)

Eye Candy (Best visual presentation)

Exotic (Creative flavor combos)

Ethnic (World cuisine in River City)

Comfort Food (A new take on an old theme)

This One?s Got It All (Your No. 1 favorite)