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Bon
Appetit, December 1986
The Cook's Exchange, Bon Appetit,
December 1986
"Even here in sunny Arizona, a good hearty stew
is welcome on those occasional cool days we do
have. And, in keeping with a southwestern theme,
this variation includes zippy red chili and
plenty of garlic and herbs. It
makes either a great one-pot lunch or, with a
crisp salad and warm bread, a really well
balanced dinner."
Jane's
Southwestern Beef and Vegetable Stew
(Makes about 8 cups)
- 3 T. olive oil
- 1 pound chuck or other
beef stew meat, cut into 3/4" cubes
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 28 oz. can tomatoes,
chopped including juice
- 1/2 pound mushrooms,
sliced
- 4 stalks celery, sliced
- 3 carrots, peeled and
sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded
and cut julienne
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1/2 cup Italian parsley,
minced
- 1 dried red chili pepper
- 1 tsp. dried basil
- 1 tsp. dried Mexican
oregano
- 1/2 tsp. dried sage
- Salt and freshly ground
pepper to taste
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Heat oil in heavy large
saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
Add beef, onion and garlic and cook until meat
is browned, about 8 minutes. Mix in remaining
ingredients. Reduce heat to low, cover and
simmer 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Cool to
room temperature. Cover and refrigerate
overnight for best flavor. Serve stew hot. |
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Tucson Citizen,
September 2001 (excerpted)
CUSTOM CUISINE
Mindful of special needs, personal chefs whip up
and freeze your favorites, and the cost might
surprise you.
By Rogelio Olivas, Citizen Staff Writer
Once a month, when Kendall Soresby’s [pseudonym] food is
running low, someone comes into her kitchen,
cooks all her favorite foods, and puts them in
containers and stores them in her freezer.
No, it’s not the work of elves. It’s just her
personal chef, Jane Cherry, doing her job.
Like many Americans today who are too busy to
cook for themselves or who are tired of the
hassle, Soresby has opted to let someone else
slave away in the kitchen for her.
“I was bored with my own cooking,” says Soresby,
“I don’t like to cook and I was not eating well
enough.”
“These people work a lot of hours,” adds Cherry.
“They don’t have time to do their grocery
shopping and plan their meals. But all of them
want to eat well; all of them are concerned
about what they eat”.
Soresby especially has to be concerned about
what she eats because she has various food
allergies. When she and Cherry met at a
networking event in October, they discovered a
business relationship between them could benefit
both equally: Soresby wouldn’t have to cook and
shop as often, and Cherry could expand her base
of clients with special dietary requirements, a
group whose needs she specializes in now.
As she does with all her clients, Cherry first
filled out a very thorough questionnaire with
Soresby about what foods she likes, dislikes,
and is allergic to and what special dietary
needs she has to meet. They then reviewed sample
menus and came up with some alternatives
specifically for her.
For Soresby, who is a vegetarian, the variety of
nutritional value of the meals is what makes
them special.
“It’s all kinds of things that I wouldn’t make –
and I mean that in a good way – food that I
would not take the trouble to make myself,” she
says. “The thing about Jane is she’s really good
about researching, so she comes up with some
really interesting menu items.”
It’s this customer satisfaction that motivates
Cherry, who became a certified personal chef
after her mother had read an article about the
industry and suggested she try it.
The hard work and long hours of owning a
restaurant or catering business never appealed
to her, so those weren’t career options. Since
people had always told her what a great cook she
is, she decided to try her hand at it
professionally and enrolled in a training
course.
For Cherry, becoming a chef has allowed her to
fulfill both professional and personal goals.
“I’m helping people. I’m a very giving person
and this falls right into that,” she says.
The flexibility of the job isn’t bad either. In
summer she works two or three days a week and
spends four to six hours in the kitchen,
depending on how many people she’s cooking for.
In winter it’s three to five days a week. She
has seven clients and cooks for most of them
every other week.
Most times she never even sees them. She has
keys to most of their homes and lets herself in
and prepares their meals while they’re away. So
when her clients come home, their freezers are
filled with all their favorite meals.
“The misconception is that you have to be an
Oprah Winfrey to have one,” she says, but that
isn’t the case.
Soresby, who isn’t wealthy or extravagant, says
the money is well spent. “This is a great
service for people who want to feel better, who
want to have certain diets taken care of and who
don’t mind investing in their health,” she says.
“It’s not extraordinarily expensive when people
add up what they spend (on food),” she adds,
pointing out that her food bill has dropped
about $150 a month since she hired Cherry in
January. “Do it. You’ll feel like a complete
princess.” |
Cooking up a new career
Many members of two-breadwinner families have
neither the time nor inclination to make
home-cooked meals every night. That's where the
personal chef comes in, often providing a week's
worth of meals that can be frozen.Many
personal chefs are mothers who can get their
jobs done before the kids return from school,
according to Wendy Perry, co-founder of the
Personal Chefs Network.
Jane Cherry of See Jane Cook (www.seejanecook.com)
in Tucson went into the business four years ago
when her son was four-and-a-half. She cooks for
eight or nine clients, which keeps her busy
"eight to 14 days a month" during most of the
year, she says. During Arizona's sizzling
summers, many of her clients depart for cooler
climes and she works less.
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Going
out or staying in
Couch potatoes and club-hoppers have plenty of
ways to say so long to 2005
By Jennifer Duffy and Sarah Mauet
Did you ring in 2005 on the living room couch —
eyes glued to the television until the ball
dropped in Times Square?
If you prefer spending New Year's Eve in the
comfort of your own home, but want it to be more
fun or meaningful, we hear ya.
Staying In: For the Whole Family
Chef Jane Cherry plans to spend her New Year's
Eve warming by the fire with her 10-year-old
son, Grant, and husband, David. The family makes
savory appetizers and rents a few movies, too.
"I just don't like being out and about on that
night. It's too scary for me because everybody
is drinking," the 47-year-old said.
Cook together. Cherry, a personal chef,
recommends appetizers for New Year's Eve — and
small bites that can be picked up with
toothpicks are a hit among children. A great
alternative to hot apple cider is wassail, a
spiced punch served hot. |
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