Having grown up in a hospitable family in and around New York City, good food has always played a major role in my life.
Whether making party food, school lunches or our family dinners, my mother’s cooking was classic with a creative twist, and always delicious. The rules regarding food in our house were simple: you must try everything at least once, and if you don’t like it, you don’t have to try it again for a year! Pretty fair.
We went out to eat often as well, which developed an early affinity for international cuisine of nearly every variety. Tableside presentations were always highly entertaining: Sizzling skillets and Guacamole at Casa del Sol, Peking duck at Mr. Chow, Japanese Hibachi Grill shows, Crepes Suzettes at La Petite Maison, and Caesar Salad and Chateaubriand at the Fife & Drum are a few of my fondest memories.
Leaving the city for the tranquility of the Adirondacks every August meant importing your own party. Thankfully, my mother’s library of cookbooks awaited me, and at 17, I was learning how to cook with my favorite 4-star-chefs, chez moi. I spent my junior year abroad studying in Rome and traversed Europe with an insatiable appetite for experiencing its cultures: food, wine and art were my specialties.
After college, and a brief foray in politics, my passion for cooking had only grown. While visiting family in Palm Beach, Florida, I enrolled in culinary school and fell in love with it. While completing my degrees, I started working at Café Boulud Palm Beach to learn the fundamentals of a French fine dining kitchen.
A year and a half later, I moved back to NYC and started working in the catering division of Restaurant Daniel (Feast & Fetes), ultimately moving upstairs to the 3-Michelin star gastronomic kitchen. The lifestyle was one of complete immersion and I learned more in these years than I could have ever imagined was possible.
After over five years on the restaurant side of the culinary world, I decided to make the switch back to the cuisine à la maison (home cooking), keeping my culinary focus on the healthy, fresh and soulful foods of southern France. In the photo and travel sections I am working hard to recap the many wonderful cities I have visited lately and in years past.
I hope you enjoy my site and please be in touch with any questions or comments!
Merci et bon appétit !
Katherine
