Chef Rae Rosbough

Some people just know early what they want to be when they grow up.  As a youngster, when Rae Rosbough’s mom encouraged her to go outside and play, she found excuses to stay inside and organize the kitchen cabinets.  She says she knew it was where she belonged.  Going to high school in Miamisburg, she couldn’t wait for her junior year so she could register for the vo-tech cooking classes.  Upon graduation she headed to Johnson & Wales to pursue her culinary education in 2000.  By 2002, degree in hand she returned to Dayton and got her first job at the now defunct Mediterra.  From there she moved to Cafe Bouelvard, then to Cena for a 1 year stint, and then back to usher in the new concept of Bouelvard Haus in the Oregon District.  This month Boulevard Haus celebrates teh beginning of their third year in business.

Chef Rae was kind enough to take on our 10 questions:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?

whole shallots

Shallots- I love the flavor that shallots add to almost any dish hot, cold, savory and sometimes even sweet. They add so much to a dish, without overpowering it, that it may not be a single recognizable flavor, but one that blends and enhances each dish.

What ingredient do you dread?
Fillo dough- I do not care for working with is dough because it shreds, crumbles and dries out quickly…But I love to eat it!
What’s your favorite dish to make?
Duck confit- I’ve loved this dish since the first time I tasted it at Napa Valley Grille in Providence Rhode Island back in the nineties and I’ve been perfected my technique for it ever since.
What’s your favorite pig out food?
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Any flavor anytime.
What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
I’ve eaten at Rue Dumaine several times and have loved it! It is a comfortable environment with immaculate food and professional, friendly service. what else could you ask for?

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
Watch or buy the cookbook of the show America’s Test Kitchen on PBS. it is a great learning tool that takes you step by step through making delicious dishes and teaches you the science behind the techniques. I love the show and own the book. My husband, sister and brother in law, all home cooks, use it religiously as do I.
If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
Dinner party, who has time for that? I can’t name just 4. I’m not a very star struck person and I feel like food is a comfort and something that brings people together.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
Gordon Ramsey- I want to be a household name and a millonaire duh. He also gets to help people achieve their goals. Which is nice no matter how big of a jerk he likes to appear to be.

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?

I’m a very simple person I like to hang out at home with my husband, we also enjoy hanging out in the Oregon District or during the season we love going to Dragon’s games.

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:

The crewe relaxing after work at Boulevard Haus

It seems like all disaster stories end in a lucky break, or you just make your own luck. There are so many of them, why can’t I think of one? Refrigerators going out, no dishwasher, people not showing up for their shift, power going out in mid service. convection oven down. So, so, so many but that’s life in the restaurant biz. As for a lucky break, I think that knowing that this is what I wanted to do from a young age and pursuing that dream is a lucky break! The fact that I can get up each day and make food, and enjoy what I do  for a living, and get paid for it is an amazing feeling. There are a lot of people out there that can’t say that.

Together he and wife, Judy, bring an American flair to the Thai dining experience with a creative fusion of east meets western cuisine with award-winning dishes like Roasted Garlic and Chive Rangoons, winner for best use of Garlic at the Cox Arboretum Garlic Fest in 2008 pictured here and Twice Cooked Fish-distinctly flavored with authentic ingredients,  like kaffir lime leaves.  

In 2008 Bahn Mai  was named to the Dayton Daily News Hidden Gems list.

And now the ten questions:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?

I love basil because it’s the key ingredient in my favorite dish, Pad Kapow Basil Stir Fry.
(Special Bonus- Chef Bob’s Pak Kapow recipe is included at the end of this post.)

What ingredient do you dread?

Seafood. There are a couple of dishes & appetizers that I make well and that are popular at the restaurant, but in general I just don’t like preparing it.

What’s your favorite dish to make?

Basil Stir Fry!! I eat this everywhere I go when I’m in Thailand.

What’s your favorite pig out food?

Mexican! Everything goes with a margarita…

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?

Bravo’s Italian and Linh’s Restaurant.

What’s your best advice for home chefs?

Never stop practicing and don’t be afraid to experiment with different foods and cooking methods.

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?

1.              Anne Heller (former food critic from Dayton Daily News). She loved my Thai style of country cooking.

2.            Ming Tsai (TV food star, ex-Daytonian). Then I hope he would see what great food and chefs we have here at home.

3.            My wife and her friends. Who doesn’t want to cook for a bunch of beautiful women?

4.            Anyone solely stuck on Chinese food. We need to expand their horizons!

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?

TV celebrity chefs – They have great skill, showmanship, and personality. They have the opportunity to reach so many people and expose them to new cultures, food and cooking techniques that they may have otherwise not known about.

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?

I dine at other restaurants in between visiting music stores and pawnshops, searching for that ever-elusive guitar that will make me sound like Van Halen!

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:

My kitchen disaster happened during my first ever, live cooking event on Channel 22/45, local Dayton morning news.

I had been waiting patiently for about 20 minutes with my pan on the stove (and the heat on because I could go live any minute). The camera panned my way as the morning anchors Nathan and Asia began to introduce me and the dish I was about to cook. I poured the cooking oil into the hot pan and then….Poof!! The pan caught fire! Smoke was billowing everywhere as the stunned anchors quickly recovered with jokes, “Our station is so hot we’re on fire!” I was able to put out the flames and fan away the smoke even though I was stunned myself.

After regaining a bit of composure, I attempted to cook again. In went the oil and….Poof! Fire and smoke again!!! I wanted to run and hide but thanks to the witty anchors we all made a joke of it and pushed on. I cooked and the camera was able to catch me stirring up stuff, despite the smoky scene….

What became of this? Lots of phone calls to my house, something to add to the station’s blooper reel and most of all a great story to tell people…and video evidence to prove it.

Bahn Mai Thai Cafe is located at 725 Lyons Road in Centerville
(in the same shopping center as Arrow Wine behind Sam’s on 725)

You can visit them for lunch Mon – Fri from 11-2:30pm and dinner Mon – Thurs 5-9pm, and Fri & Sat 5-9:30pm.  They are closed on Sunday. Reservations are not required, but can be made at 937.435.0624.

Pad Kapow (Chicken and Basil Stir Fry)

Photo Courtesy ARC Ohio Dream Cookbook

3 T vegetable or canola oil

3-4 cloves of garlic, minced

1-5 Thai chili peppers, minced
(the number of peppers depends on your spice level)

7 ounces of chicken (sliced or minced)

1/2 small yellow onion, sliced

1/2 small green bell pepper, sliced

1/2 small red bell pepper, sliced

2 T of oyster sauce

2 T of Golden Mountain brand seasoning sauce

½ T of fish sauce

1 t of white pepper

2 t sugar

1/2 cup of holy basil

Heat frying pan to medium high heat, add vegetable or canola oil.  Sauté garlic and Thai chili peppers together, taking care not to let the garlic burn.  Add chicken and stir fry, constantly stir the contents around to avoid burning.  When chicken looks half cooked add the onions and bell peppers, stir.  Add Oyster and Golden Mountain sauces, stir.  Add fish sauce, white pepper, sugar, stir.  Add he basil leaves and give it a quick stir fry, remove from heat and serve with jasmine scented steamed rice.

Franco back visiting his hometown of Duronia, Italy

Franco Germano grew up in Italy, then came to America at age 18.  It wasn’t long after that he joined the Army, serving as a mess sergeant during the Vietnam War.  In 1976, he opened his dream, Franco’s Ristorante Italiano.  He often claims he is simply carrying out the tradition of his “mamma”, feeding friends and family.  Franco is now sharing his love of Italian cooking by launching a new service- “Your Traveling Chef“.  Kicking off  with 2 cooking demonstration classes at Southern Ohio Kitchens in March, Franco fights the Winter Blues and Franco cooks for Spring will each be 3 hour classes where you’ll learn how to make a delicious meal, pair it with a luscious wine and make some new friends.  Franco is also willing to come to your house and share an afternoon or evening cooking with you and your friends.

Here Franco gives us his answers to our 10 questions:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
One?  Garlic, tomatoes, olive oil. Great ingredients.  Great basics.

What ingredient do you dread?
Ingredients for Chinese cooking like soy sauce, etc.  Have no idea what to do with them and make them work.

What’s your favorite dish to make?
Franco’s World-Famous Spaghetti.  My invention.  Not creation.  Invention.  No one else can follow it.

What’s your favorite pig out food?
Salami, Prosciutto, real mozzarella, Kalamata Olives.  I can eat them daily.  It’s going to kill me, but I love them.

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
Hickory Bar-B-Que on Brown St.  Steak and chicken barbecue.  Fantastico!

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
Follow the recipe and be sure to use quality ingredients.  Don’t get cheap!!!

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
My parents – fantastic people and fantastic cooks.  Tommy Lasorda because he loves Italian food.  Andrea Bocelli.  His voice is phenomenal.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
I look up to my mother.  A terrific cook.  True connoisseur.

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
Golf, golf, & golf.

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:
Our lucky break was with a restaurant disaster.  An hour before opening, someone snuck in our back door and set the women’s restroom on fire.  We could smell something burning but couldn’t locate it at first.  I looked outside thinking it was at the Chinese restaurant that shares our building.  They were looking outside thinking it was us.  I came back in and thought to check the restrooms.  The men’s room was fine.  When I opened the women’s restroom door, POOF!!  I was completely black head to toe.  We put out the fire and still managed to open on time but I could not come out of the kitchen.  I was lucky I didn’t lose my life or my business that night.

Interesting story….
In 2005, the Senior Open was in Dayton.  I received a call from Tom Watson asking if he could get a table for two.  He said he was waiting at another restaurant in town that does not take reservations and did not want to wait the two and a half hours he was being quoted.  I told him to come on down.  A few minutes later, he called to see if he could make another reservation.  He ended up bringing a large group from the other restaurant.  Did I mention I like golf?

Carrie Walters

Carrie is an accomplished chef who has been the keynote speaker for many groups, ranging from ten to over 300 people. One of the most  popular instructors at the DLM School of Cooking, Carrie teaches a variety of classes, always with her approachable demeanor, contagious enthusiasm, and interactive teaching style. A classically trained chef, Carrie earned her culinary degree in Seattle.

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?

I would have to say beef. At DLM we have the best beef in the business. All it needs  is some simple cooking methods and some salt and pepper.

What ingredient do you dread?

Red and Green Bell Peppers. I think they are over used! Yes, their color adds a lot to a dish but their flavor tends to overpower everything else.

What’s your favorite dish to make?

At home with the change of season I like to braise a lot. I make a lot of pot roasts, soups and  anything else with sauce! Another dish I keep coming back to is roast chicken, It makes everyone in my house happy and the leftovers are great!

What’s your favorite pig out food?

Thai and Vietnamese-I love all the fresh clean flavors. I like the combinations of fresh herbs, citrus and chiles. I think I could eat shredded papaya salad everyday and never get sick of it.

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?

I love Linh’s, Akashi, and House of Thai for my Asian fix. I’ll take Meadowlark for lunch any day of the week!

What’s your best advice for home chefs?

Cooking really supposed to be fun and relaxing. Don’t over think or stress about it.  Its all about getting to sit down with people you love and share some food. Make it simple.

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?

I’d cook for my parents who never got the chance to know me as a grown woman and 2 of my favorites Chef Instructors from my culinary school days. I’d cook some of my Mom’s old favorites with my own twists. All executed, of course,  with the classic skills Chef Hawley and Chef Ruegg taught me.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?

I really respect both Norman and Calvin Mayne. They let me do what I am good at!  I love being able to wear lots of hats-creating recipes and programs, writing and teaching. DLM is a company that I am proud to represent .

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?

A perfect day would be to take an early hike at either the Gorge or Sugarcreek Reserve  with my family , then maybe do a little shopping at the Greene and then see a movie or a play. Unfortunately the reality of my time off is trying to catching up with all the laundry and running my kids around!

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:

We were filming a TV show with Sara Moulton at the School of Cooking  a couple of years ago and one of the dishes were supposed to be a specific type of chicken There was a live audience watching my every move waiting for Sara to show up. Our chickens never made the air flight to Dayton so last minute I had to use solid frozen Cornish hens for the camera. I had to “paint” on some color for the birds to look cooked. I used a concoction of kitchen bouquet, molasses and soy sauce. Even after all that we still had a couple audience members wanting to taste those birds!

Chef Fish was recruited to come to Dayton back in 2007 to take over as Executive Chef when Pacchia went through one of its transformations.  Just as Joe, his wife Tonia and daughter were settling into a house in the Oregon District, Owner Glen Brailey sold the business and his position was eliminated.  Until recently Chef Fish commuted to Columbus for work at Whole Foods, but  Chef recently accepted a position as Head Production Chef at UD.  But being a man who likes to stay busy, he’s also opened The Chef Case at the 2nd Street Market.  The Chef Case focuses on Local, Organic, Free Range, Hormone free products,  focusing on sustainable food service solutions including actively recycling and composting.  Oh and did we mention, Chef also does private catering, teaches cooking classes and advocates for locavores.

In between both jobs Chef Joe managed to squeeze in time to answer our 10 questions:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
Right now I am really a fan of quinoa.  Quinoa is a grain alternative that is actually in the grass family. My Wife was diagnosed with Celiac last year so I have been experimenting with a lot of wheat alternatives. Quinoa is considered a superfood, it has very high protein content and it’s easy to digest, it also has lots of important nutrients.

What ingredient do you dread?
Fresh Horseradish Root, it’s a root like yucca, it has to be peeled and grated. The fumes that come off one horseradish stick will make you cry, it feels like you have rubbed jalapeño juice in your eyes or just diced 100 pounds of onions.

Chef Joe's Eggplant Napoleon

What’s your favorite dish to make?
In the fall I really look forward to making my Eggplant Napoleon. It’s a dish that I came up with at while at Pacchia. It has two ingredients that most people don’t think of putting together but the unique smoky flavor that results is a big favorite of mine.

What’s your favorite pig out food?
Well, it comes delivered in a box, it has very little mess, you can keep the leftovers in that same box. Even when it is bad it is still pretty good…  a Chef’s dream, a great meal with no cleanup –it is a well know fact that I love pizza.

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
If I have a babysitter, then it would have to be Rue Dumaine, I really love what Anne is doing.  If I don’t have a sitter then it’s a tossup between Amar India and Thai 9.

What’s your best advice for home chefs? Educate yourself about our agriculture in the states; learn about GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and hormones, big agro, the new pesticides, and about the benefits of eating a local diet. Learn what is in season in the Miami Valley and how to handle those ingredients. All produce that is not local and/or not in season is treated with a gas which changes the molecular make up of that food, and not in a good way!

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?

Marco Pierre White owner of the Belvedere and L'Escargot restaurants in London

1) My Late Father, 2) Augustus Escoffier because he was the father of modern cuisine, 3) Marco Pierre White because I would love another chance to convince him to hire me! 4) Marty Holzberg, Certified Master Chef -a great friend in culinary adventures, cooking for a Master Chef is a whole different ball of wax.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why? I look up to almost all the people at my imaginary dinner party above because they are culinary rock stars but beyond that I guess, I really look up to Ferran Adrià and dream of getting that reservation and taking my Wife back to Spain where she grew up.

Chef Joe with daughter Madison several years ago

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
At present I work 7 days a week, 5 days at UD and 2 days at the 2^nd Street Market so, I don’t have a day off right now. When I do have a day off honestly the first order of business is sleep. But a big part of the reason that we moved back to Dayton and stay here is because of all there is to do, festivals, kids activities, parks and some great shows.

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story.
While working at the Savoy Hotel in London a salad was called over the loud speaker in French with something at the end I did not understand, not being fluent in French.  “Oeuf de Caille en salade garble garble”,  quail egg salad, difficult because it has a sunny side up quail egg and a whole cooked quail on top. I made the salad and sent it out. Not a minute later the Sous Chef came back screaming my name. She said –insert heavy British accent- “Joe Look On This!” Hurriedly I turned to the pass and Ellen yelled “What’s wrong with this? Me-blank “um I duno, it is a quail salad” Ellen: “it’s a quail salad, but it’s for Paul McCartney and he’s a  %$^&@#$ vegetarian! -Plate flies at my head… “Now do it over in half the time!”

While at the University of Michigan in the School of Engineering, Candace discovered she loved cooking more than she enjoyed physics and math. This realization led her down an entirely different path. She has since graduated from Oakland College with a degree in Culinary Arts along with certificates in Food Handling Safety and Nutrition.

Candace has been cooking both personally and professionally for almost 20 years. The Busy Gourmet was a natural outcome of Candace’s lifelong love of preparing food and entertaining. She  relocated to Ohio about 5 years ago and has been busy feeding people in the Dayton area ever since.  In 2006 she launched The Busy Gourmet, a small personal chef service, specializing in small parties and meal service.  While growing this business, Candace was continually looking for a restaurant location, knowing she truly wanted to be a restaurateur.  This past spring the short lived Soprano’s location became available and within a month of signing the lease, Chef had painted, set a menu, hired her staff and opened for business.  Having survived her first Restaurant Week to rave reviews  we think Rinke’s The Hawthorn Grill is fast establishing itself as a dining destination in Dayton.

Enjoy 10 Questions with Chef Candace Rinke:

Enjoy a recipe from The Busy Gourmet's party menu

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
Butter, cream and salt – my family always teases me about this but come on…who doesn’t love a good Alfredo or creme brulee…can’t do those dishes without these wonderfully sinful ingredients!!!

What ingredient do you dread?
I can’t really think of anything I dread…I love to work with all kinds of fresh ingredients…the only thing that really comes to mind is soft-shell crab…I just can’t handle cutting off their little heads while they are still alive…!

What’s your favorite dish to make?
I don’t think I have a favorite – I just love food!  And part of the excitement of what I do is coming up with new, tasty dishes all the time.

What’s your favorite pig out food?
Chinese!  And Thai!  I love the complexity of Asian flavors – they’re so well balanced between sweet, spicy, salty and tangy…it takes a special skill to combine all those ingredients without one overpowering another.

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
China Cottage in Springboro and Bahn Mai Thai in Centerville – see pig out comment above!

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
What grows together goes together.  Things that are in season at the same time tend to have a natural affinity for each other – like basil and tomatoes or cherries and apricots.  The Italians and French know this better than most of us – if things grow in the ground together and ripen at the same time, it’s likely that they’ll compliment each other on the plate.  Take chances and you’ll probably be delightfully surprised by the outcome!

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
I think given the choice, I’d like more than four people – my ideal dinner party is a big group of family and friends sitting or standing around the bar in our kitchen eating and drinking until we can’t eat and drink any more!  I’m Polish so I learned early on about hospitality and the concept of “the more the merrier” – and my grandma taught me well how to cook for a crowd so bring it on!

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
Takashi Yagihashi - I worked with him in Michigan where he won a James Beard Award.  He’s since opened restaurants in Las Vegas and Chicago.  Watching him in action was a real learning experience for me – in my earlier jobs, I saw chefs that screamed, yelled and threw sharp objects.  In Takashi’s kitchen, everything was calm and calculated and executed with the precision of an operating room.  He lead by example and his integrity was above reproach.  I hope I’m able to lead my staff in the same way.

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
Since we opened I haven’t had a day off (yikes!!!) but when I do get time away from the restaurant I like to spend it with my husband, Kurt, and my kids, Nick, Hayley and Noah – we like to go to Caesar’s Creek and bikeride by the river.

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:
My lucky break has been finding this space and getting it open in just a few short weeks.  I have been in Dayton for almost 5 years and in that time I worked very hard to develop a catering business out of my house.  After having my son, I was desperate to get out of my own kitchen and into a restaurant to which my husband’s standard answer was “Write the business plan first!”  I finally took a class at the Small Business Development Center in Dayton and after the eight week class and countless days and nights of studying, thinking, planning, researching and writing, I printed out a 37 page business plan outlining my lifelong dream of restaurant ownership.  Over the next year I searched for the perfect location (and waited for the stars to align themselves) and in the beginning of May, the opportunity presented itself at this location.  I signed the paperwork on May 18th and we hit the ground running.  It’s been great, and terrifying, and stressful, and wonderful and the culmination of a lifelong dream.  We’ve been very lucky so far and now we just want to keep going on the roll we’re on, serving people really good food with smiling faces in a pleasant, comfortable atmosphere.  If you leave thinking about the next meal you’ll have with us, we’ve done our job.

Visit The Hawthorn Grill at 1222 E. Stroop Road in Kettering

Tues – Thurs 4:30-9pm
Fri & Sat 4:30-10pm
Sun Brunch 9am – 2pm

Call 298-2222 for reservations!

For Chef Kearney, the words are close to her heart. Her passion for culinary perfection and the “sense of place” she feels in the kitchen, will always be the cornerstones of her dedication to her chosen career.  A native of Ohio, Chef got her early training at  Greater Cincinnati Culinary Arts Academy then made her way into the culinary scene in New Orleans.  And what a way she made, with stints as a sous chef for some of the most acclaimed chefs in the big easy, and eventually buying the restaurant Peristyle, after the owner passed away.  Kearney’s hard work, incredible mentors and her  respect for food  and proper preparation skyrocketed her to the top of the culinary world.  Her career has been documented with a cover of Food & Wine Magazine, when she was declared one of the “10 Best New Chefs in America,”  four Best Chef Awards from the James Beard Foundation, a Best Chef award by American Express, a feature in Gourmet Magazine and writing credits for Emeril Lagasse’s cookbook recipes and scripts for his tv show.

After all this success, a medical crisis made Kearney rethink her life.  In 2002, a brain aneurysm ruptured and after several more incidents and surgery, Kearney and business partner and husband Tom Sand returned home to the Miami Valley.  It allowed her to spend time with her family caring for her father in his last years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer disease.  Tom and Anne also began a small farm, Two Small Tomatoes, on the Kearney family property in Lebanon.  Kearney sells her wares at Centerville Farmers Market, the second Thurs of each month from 1-6pm . Here’s an excerpt from her weekly Rue Dumaine email:

“This week there will be corn** bisque, black bean-corn** salsa, gingered carrot** soup, white bean-arugula** dip, zucchini**- chocolate chip muffins…. just to name a few. She’ll be making breakfast bars in the am and Tom will be in the RUE kitchen tomorrow creating a huge batch of his tasty granola, which makes me very happy, it is so good and good for you. I am bringing along more product to this months market as I hope to satisfy the demand; don’t let me down, come on out and see what your local community has to offer.” (The ** refer to locally grown ingredients)

In 2007 with her health under control Anne and her husband Tom refurbished a failed asian bistro in what has now become one of Dayton’s hottest restaurants. Rue Dumaine was named after the street that Peristyle, her New Orleans place was on.   Fueled by Anne’s love of fresh ingredients and her own more casual interpretation of french classics, Dayton diners have felt the love and are giving it right back, making reservations very much suggested for a meal at this Washington Township eatery.  Or each Friday you can have lunch from 11:30am – 1:30pm.

And now – here’s Chef Anne Kearney’s answers to our 10 questions:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
Local produce, I am intoxicated with the abundance that the Miami Valley provides for Rue Dumaine.
What ingredient do you dread?
Frozen fish, it is sent away from here.

What’s your favorite dish to make?
Endive salad
What’s your favorite pig out food?
Cheese in various forms

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
Meadowlark; Wiley and her crew rock. (You can read Wiley’s 10 ?’s here)

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Oh, please buy local.

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?

John Neal, my mentor-I would love him to taste how my food has progressed thru the years. He would tell me and I would benefit from that. (Kearney  went to New Orleans to work under the late chef John Neal at the acclaimed Bistro at the Maison de Ville Hotel. When Chef Neal left to open Peristyle in late 1991, he took Kearney along as his Sous chef. Kearney credits Neal for her tutelage in classic French cooking techniques, as well as perfecting her own palate and prompting her discovery of new tastes and the depths of flavor.

“His passion for his work was so real, it was almost tangible,” says Kearney. “I will always hold with me the image of John hovering over a tiny pot that held what would become a perfect pink pea risotto. He would stir and taste, stir and taste, until it was absolutely perfect.”)

James J. Kearney, my father- He loved my food and he also loved that I found a joy in cooking. Paula Wolfert, one of my idols-I have established much of my culinary foundation on her stories and research. She opened my eyes to the cuisine of southwestern France. Robert Heisser, my maternal grandfather- He build and ran a lodge in upstate Michigan, where cooked a sit-down dinner for the guests every night. I think he would dig the fact that I cook for a living.
Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
Chef John Besh. He has taken the reign of Culinary King of New Orleans, Louisiana actually. I respect his efforts and love his food.

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
I attend Pilates class at Practice. Seasonally weed out at the farmJ, there are some serious vegetables growing out there. I cannot wait to cook them up for all.
Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:
Kitchen disaster- The freezers went out 1 hour before my second James Beard dinner was to begin, we were serving baked Alaska that evening. At least I was in NYC, it was a tough push but we made it happen.
Lucky break- I was blessed to discover at a young age that cooking was my thing. It has taken me to far reaches and brings me joy daily.

Insider Info about Rue Dumaine’s Never Advertised, Always Sold Out Cooking Classes from the Chef herself:

“I am blessed to be sold out thru November (1 a month)and I try to take December off for holiday events. 1class a month since last July:). The classes are a great deal of fun: once the class is sold out I send out a questionnaire to all students with relevant questions regarding each persons likes, dislikes, allergies. Any food memories, techniques, or flavors that they would like to have incorporated into the menu. I post a list of seasonal ingredients and have them rank their preferences. Once I receive the completed questionnaires I begin to write the menu. Once written Michael pairs wine and it is then sent out for student approval, once approved I begin to write recipes. The day before, I prep and organize the recipes. The day of I and one of my kitchen crew set up 4 stations in the kitchen, one for each of the cooks and their assigned course. At 3pm the cook half of each couple show up and we sit down and go thru the packet of recipes, I assign 1 dish to each student. A kitchen tour is given, chefs jacket and linen apron (theirs to keep) are put on and the cooking begins. By 6pm (ideally:)) we are ready to roll out hors d’ourvres and sparkling for all. After a few minutes of down time we move to the dining room and all take a seat at a table for 10. The student who prepped the first course goes into the kitchen with me and we execute the first course. Once all plated we run the food out to the table take a seat and the student describes the dish and speaks of any challenges or funny occurrences. Michael or Evan pour the wine and talk of the pairing. This continues on for 3 more courses. They all go home full, with a packet of recipes, a menu, 1 linen apron and 1 bottle of wine from the evenings menu. All that for $300 a couple.”

If you’d like to get on the list to become a future student send contact them through their website and Rue Dumaine will contact you as they develop classes for 2011.

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KT dreamt of long hours baking instead of long hours in a cubicle. Luckily, with help from her husband Sam’s business-savvy brain and her own uncanny sweet tooth, they established KT’s Kitchen in June 2008. She and Sam were met with open arms at local events where they began selling yummy sweets. Soon after, KT heard Ana Pascal in Stranger than Fiction say, “I figured if I was going to make the world a better place I would do it with cookies.” This phrase stuck with her and was ultimately the catalyst for a change she needed. She decided to take a huge risk. In June of 2009 she quit her job in social services to bake full time. One year later, they created Bombshell Bake Shop as a new identity to better achieve their future plans for world cookie domination! In the meantime, they are busy providing delicious treats to local cafés and health food stores.  She only uses quality ingredients, such as organic flours and sugars. All sweets are vegan, which means they are free of egg, dairy, or any animal derived ingredient; including honey. Since they use no animal products or hydrogenated oils the sweets are always naturally cholesterol free!

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
Oh, this is easy…SUGAR!  I love sugar in all forms- cane sugar, sucanat, muscovado brown sugar, turbinado, molasses, brown sugar and the list goes on!  In my world there is nothing better than sugar.  I know a lot of people think sugar is “bad” but I think anything in moderation is alright.
As far as baking/cooking there are a million things you can do with sugar.  You can turn sugar into just about any consistency and make things edible you would not necessarily think are edible!  When the purple violets started to bloom in the spring my mom and I would go pick a bunch to candy.  We used to make them using egg whites but it is just as good to use water/sugar.  They are super pretty as decoration but I used to like to just eat them!

What ingredient do you dread?
I don’t necessarily dread anything in particular just for being an ingredient, but there are some ingredients I dread cleaning up after using!  When there is even the slightest bit of static while I carve up a big block of chocolate you better believe those little chocolate shaving go ALL over the place like the iron shards in a Wooly Willy magnetic face.  I also despise washing bowls after making frosting.  I try to pawn that job off on my husband Sam as much as possible!

What’s your favorite dish to make?
I love to make and decorate cupcakes.  After a lot of decorating practice and ugly mishaps, I put a significant amount of time into making each one look and taste like a little piece of delicious art.  I get bored easily, but there are so many possibilities and new ways to challenge myself with cupcakes.

As far as cooking is concerned I love this dish my Aunt Nancy taught me how to make when I was a teenager.  We call it goddess tofu because it is made with Annie’s Goddess Dressing.  This recipe has made many a tofu-haters change their tune.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Cut the tofu into thin slices and squeeze as much water out of each piece as possible with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels.  (The key to good tofu texture is squeezing all the water out.)

Dip each slice in tamari or lite soy sauce.

Dredge the slice through nutritional yeast.

Do that with every piece and place on a non-stick foil lined, baking sheet.

Smear about 1-2 Tablespoons of Annie’s Goddess Dressing or Trader Joe’s Goddess Dressing (they are basically the same) onto each slice.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until the slices start to look browned.

Flip over each slice and smear with more Goddess Dressing.

Bake for another 15 or so minutes or until the slices are browned and almost crispy.

Serve with basmati rice or I really like Trader Joe’s brown jasmine rice.
What’s your favorite pig out food?
Salty, crispy french fries and chocolate ice cream.  Yes, I like them together.  Don’t judge me.  J
What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
This is a tough question, Sam and I love to eat out and we love to pretend we are food critics!  We started an “eating out” budget when we were married almost 7 years ago and every month without fail we go over budget.  Currently, we have been pretty obsessed with Siam Pad Thai on Wilmington- we have yet to be disappointed by anything there and we have ordered pretty much everything!  Pasha at the Greene has some amazing hummus and I love Tank’s for a good “My Way” grilled cheese.
What’s your best advice for home bakers?
Play music while you bake.  Crank it up, maybe even dance a little.
Preheat your oven then wait at least 10 minutes before putting anything in it.
Don’t be afraid to mess up, you will.  You will also get over it.

Get an oven thermometer and pay attention to it.

Use fresh ingredients.  Don’t ever bake with baking powder that belonged to your grandmother.  My dad has a tin can of McCormick nutmeg from the 1970’s.  Unless you are saving it for nostalgic reasons it is time to throw that bad boy away.

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
I think most people would take this opportunity to choose guests who may dazzle a reader with their desire for stimulating, intellectual conversation.  Or choose pertinent historical figures that changed the world as we know it.  I, on the other hand, am not going to do this.

Tina Fey- she cracks me up.

Zooey Deschanel- Not only is she a vegan foodie but I have a major girl crush on her.  I would ask her to serenade us after dinner.

Isa Moskowitz of the post punk kitchen- To have the chance to cook/bake for her would make my heart a flutter.

Burt Reynolds- there is no other reason than my love for Burt Reynolds is true and as deep as the ocean.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
I worked with youth in various social services settings for about 8 years before I quit my job to finish my master’s degree and bake full time.  Awhile back I mentioned to my husband that I wanted to figure out a way to start a bakery where I could implement the “counselor” part of me.  Low and behold Elin Ross from my hometown of Frederick, MD starts this non-profit bakery called Cakes for Cause www.cakesforcause.org. She has a ton of experience in social services and she is a pastry chef.  I have been following her and her business closely.  I think she is a pretty cool lady, baker, youth-advocate and business woman.  I admire her on many levels.  I would love to start something like this in Dayton, but only time will tell.

I also adore and admire Natalie Slater of Bake and Destroy.  She describes her blog as a “food blog equivalent to a punch in the throat” and I concur.  She encourages me to be more creative, take risks, challenge myself and bake on my own terms.
What do you do in the Dayton region on a day off?
On a nice day off, I love to play outside!  There are so many awesome outdoor activities to get into in Dayton.   I LOVE going to the metro parks.  Sam and I try our best to find dog friendly activities so our dog, Lola, can join us.  Sam plays volleyball at Setters and Kettering Rec.  I just watch him play because I am awful at competitive sports.  If I feel like being pampered I get my hair done at Cherry Lee’s and get a massage from Stephanie Suriano at Touch of Gratitude.  When the weather outside is frightful we go out to eat!

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:
I am a klutz to say the least.  I drop and spill things constantly.  I have dropped an entire bowl of frosting on the floor, knocked over a table full of cookies, spilled a bag of powdered sugar and most recently I broke a fluorescent light bulb over a bowl of cookie dough.  Don’t worry I did not try to salvage any of these major blunders!

An interesting story: In June 2008 we did our first event at the Yellow Springs Street Fair.  We had no clue what we were doing.  It was a well orchestrated disaster to say the least.  Our main goal was to use this venue to see what people thought about our treats.  Friends and family told me my baked goods were great but I needed strangers to give me an idea of whether I should pursue this further.  We were there for 2 hours before anyone bought anything.  I decided to put out a few samples of energy bars.  A lady grabbed one and said “it needs more sugar.”  For a moment I was heartbroken.  Then I realized she thought it was a cookie and in that case, of course it needed to be sweeter!  The main lesson I learned from that was everyone has different tastes when it comes to baked goods and food in general.  I cannot please everybody.  There will be plenty of people who try our treats and won’t like them.  That is ok with me.  It is not because they are crap.  It is because everybody has their own idea of what is good.  I will admit some of the stuff we made for that first street fair was awful.  I have grown as a baker since then and I never want to stop growing.  The day you stop challenging yourself, trying new things, and taking risks in the kitchen is the day you should just stop.

Bonus Question:  Tell us about Bombshell’s commitment to the community:

Every month we donate 10% of our sales to a cause we support.  When we decided to do this, we made a list of local causes and this month its AIDS Resource Center Ohio.   For almost 6 years I did groups on STD/STI and HIV/AIDS prevention.  The first couple years I had people from ARC as guest speakers.  The youth and I always enjoyed their presentations.  I believe ARC does amazing work in the community.  This is just a small way of saying thank you.

Where to find Bombshell Baked Goods:

Where to Buy Locally

Healthy Alternative
8258 North Main Street
Dayton, Ohio 45415

Healthy Alternative-Beavercreek
2235 N Fairfield Rd
Dayton, OH 45431

The Ohio Coffee Company
46 W. Fifth Street at Ludlow
Dayton, OH 45406

The Sidebar (formerly Pacchia)
410 E. 5th Street
Dayton, OH 45402

I arrived on a snowy morning to her office at The Easy Way Out and Chef greeted me graciously and we headed back to her kitchen, which was spotless and well organized.   We made the usual getting to know you chit chat and in no time at all I was charmed.  And then she went to the cooler to pull out a batter she’d made so it could cook while we talked.  A molten chocolate lava cake-woo hoo-she knows how to please! Of course, as we got to question 2 and her dread of baking I felt pretty guilty- she’d done what she hated most, just to make a good impression on me!

A classically trained chef, she ran her own catering business in Connecticut, then moved to Europe and then came to Dayton about 3 years ago (you can read her official bio here).  She’s a guerrilla marketer, who started her current business by talking to total strangers about her passion and skill for making good food.  And having spent just a couple hours with her, it’s easy to see why she’s making such a big impression on folks, in such a short time in the region.

As we went through the questions over a spread of bleu cheese stuffed figs with balsamic vinaigrette, marinated mushrooms, shortbread cookies and chips with her own special salsa (which by the way was so flavorful and she’ll soon be selling it commercially),  it was so easy to feel Chef Jenn’s passion for food and cooking.  Right in the middle of a question, she’d sit in anticipation as I bit into a taste and wait and watch for my reaction.  She genuinely wanted me to get as much pleasure out of eating the food as she gets from cooking it. And I did!

She told me the story of how she ended up teaching at Dorothy Lane Market School of Cooking- she was ordering fish at the seafood counter, and as a true gourmet cook, wanted it whole- head and all.  A gentleman walked by, heard her talking and asked if she was a chef.  I have to believe he too was blown away by her enthusiasm for great, fresh ingredients because he turned out to be a DLM big wig and just a couple short weeks later she was teaching her first class.  Now she teaches 5 or 6 a month, and be warned, they sell out quickly. She teaches, caters events, prepares gourmet meals for you to purchase  and eventually, when her children are older, she’ll have a full service shop where you can pick out all your ingredients and she’ll whip them into a fabulous, mouth watering menu.

We laughed and talked so much, I felt guilty for taking up so much of her time.  But not so guilty I didn’t enjoy my chocolate cake!  Hope you get the warm feeling I got meeting Chef Jenn when you read this:

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
There are so many I love! Saffron, truffles, fresh morels, tomatoes, olives, smoked paprika, really, really good olive oil…so many more I love, but I’ll stop here. Oh, and fresh herbs!

What ingredient do you dread?
I don’t really dread an ingredient, so much but I don’t enjoy precise baking with complicated recipes. I will do it when I have to but I don’t love it. I do however love baking when it comes to breads and foccacias as they give you a little more freedom.

Chef Jenn plating up some of the goodies she made for me during our interview.

What’s your favorite dish to make?
So many tapas dishes I could not begin to mention them all-it’s my favorite type of meal to cook and my favorite way to eat…small tastes of big flavors. If I had to pick a bigger dish I would say paella because it really is an art to me or osso bucco because I just love braised dishes. Braising is really all about creating a relationship with food. You combine flavors, it’s a slow cooking method that tenderizes the meat and it simmers and the smells flirt with you, building you up for the big taste finish.

What’s your favorite pig out food?
Is wine a food? Ok, I guess I would have to say pizza or really good chewy bread with great quality herb butter…and wines of course. I’m really into Spanish wines lately- I like really hearty full bodies reds with lots of tannins.
I’m not a wine snob I just like good wine!

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
I love Meadowlark, Rue Dumaine, The Winds, El Meson to name a few. Oh yeah and Amelia’s Bistro in Bellbrook and Pasha Grille at The Greene.

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
Don’t get so caught up in a recipe-it is merely a guideline-at least in cooking! Relax, have fun and try new things. Also, always start with the best ingredients to end with a great dish. Also if you are making yourself crazy trying to impress a dinner guest, they they may not really be a friend…

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
As you can see there is a theme here…I can’t limit my answers…
First would be my husband, Jim, 4 year old daughter Eva and 2 year old son Max…but my kids wouldn’t be picky eaters at this dinner party. I would also always love to have dinner with my mother and father and six sisters anytime-great food was always a way of life for us growing up. I would also love to have dinner with Julia Child, but what chef wouldn’t? I would also love to have dinner with Shirley O. Corriher (author and food scientist)- oh the stories she has and the knowledge she has is amazing to me. Plus she is so funny and down to earth.

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
Again…so many and I truly believe that you can learn from anyone and everyone.  But here are a few:
Alice Waters for how she pioneered the importance of locally grown fresh food
Julia Child-again what chef- especially female chef-doesn’t look up to her?
Jose Andres who master the art of tapas beautifully everyday
and locally Chef Wiley form Meadowlark for running a great restaurant with great food and just being a great person.  Chef Anne Kearney from Rue Dumaine for being so incredibly talented, passionate and gracious all at the same time. Chef Carrie Walters the corporate chef at DLM for being so passionate about food and bringing it to life so beautifully in a more challenging type of food service-dishes that are not made to order.. Also any of the gang at DLM-The Mayne family (who own Dorothy Lane Market) is so passionate about food and this translates so beautifully through all of their employees to the customers- I love to shop there!

Chef Jenn, Eva and Max

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
Spend time with my family. We absolutely love all the free parks in the Miami Valley. It’s one of the things that really made us love Dayton. After being in Europe where you pay for everything, even to pee, it’s amazing the abundance of open green space. We love to spend a day in Yellow Springs and at Young’s Jersey Dairy. The Boonshoft Museum has also been a wonderful place to explore with my kids.

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:

We all have a kitchen disaster story but I am pretty good about recovering, picking myself back up and laughing it off.  There was the time I catered for surprise birthday party for a client.  He said there would be about 50 people so we planned the menu to do tapas and then paella for the main meal.  Then a few days before the party, he called and said everyone was so exited about the concept of the party they all decided to rsvp so now the count was up to well over 100.  Ok-no problem, you have to be flexible in catering.  This was to be set outside but I only had an our after he got his wife out of the house to set up…the bar, the tables, the buffet tables for the tapas and burners foteh 5 large paella pans that I would be using.  He didn’t want to have a tent because his wife would obviously figure out something was happening.  Mission accomplished on time and the client was thrilled, but as I was cooking paella out of nowhere it started to rain.  One of my assistants very politely asked if we should postpone or move into the garage, but I was forming the perfect crust on the paella, so we held umbrellas over the paella to keep it protected, while I got completely soaked in my chef whites.  Just as the paella was ready, the rain stopped the guests came back outside and enjoyed the meal.  The guest had a blast, thoroughly enjoyed the party and I had a great laugh!

And of course as I left Chef Jenn’s kitchen that snowy day, she chased me out to the car with one more chocolate dessert for later.  And that reinforced that first feeling I had about her- this lady knows how to charm anyone, and she’s real!

What is your favorite ingredient to cook with?
Garlic

What ingredient do you dread?
Liver

What’s your favorite dish to make?
Anything Italian! I love seafood too!

What’s your favorite pig out food?
Grater’s Ice Cream – Mocha Chocolate Chunk

What restaurant, other than your own do you like to dine at in the Miami Valley?
I try to support local places – Really like Meadowlark, The Winds, Jay’s, C’est Tout….I like Oakwood Club and Pine Club – My Boys LOVE good steaks!

What’s your best advice for home chefs?
Do not be afraid to relax and have fun with a recipe. Use it like a TRIP TIC from Triple A – experiment, try new things, eat what you like and don’t be afraid of ingredients and terminology….I say a recipe is like a road map….It’s fun to take a side trip and go some place off the beaten path. Same with a recipe – substitute ingredients, add your own flair and twists…..I think this is what makes cooking so much fun!

If you could invite any 4 guests to a dinner party who would they be and why?
It would be my four Grandparents – They really shaped my life with the sacrifices they made to be here in this country, their work ethic and devotion to family and they all died when I was too young to
really appreciate them. I actually never met my Mother’s Mom who died while she was young…. I want to hear their stories, enjoy those times I remember as a kid around the table arguing about everything and nothing. They were great people who left a legacy by the simple ways they lived their lives during very turbulent and challenging times. They emigrated to this country while all young and forged something from nothing through their efforts. It is a lesson and a generation who’s messages have been lost….My whole love of food, cooking and my personality come from my Italian Grandfather and my Mother….(I think my greatest blessing in this life was being born to my Mother and Father- they have supported me and loved me and given me everything they had and then some…)

Who do you look up to in the industry and why?
In Dayton, as a kid growing up, we all respected and admired Dieter Krug. He was the Culinary Godfather so to speak from a kitchen standpoint…..I have always respected David Hume (of the Pine Club) for his devotion to his systems, his business practices. I loved Joe Kiss of Old Hickory for his generosity and his open book views on the industry – He had no secrets and shared with anyone who wanted to learn. I loved Jay Haverstick like a second father – he taught me more about working one’s operation and his political outlooks and how legislation affected our industry. It was Jay who taught me how to focus on the details. He was a great mentor who loved every aspect of this business and he is very missed. I was also befriended by a very good man – Joe Tikos who was one of my early employers. He gave me the confidence and enough leash to learn, grow and develop. He was a great success story in his own right and he had a great practical attitude towards cooking, the industry and he is the one who told me it really doesn’t matter how great a Chef I might become if I never learn business and how to manage people. He is still a very close friend and I really owe a lot to him!

What do you do in the Miami Valley on a day off?
What is a day off?

Share a kitchen disaster, lucky break or other interesting story:
I have been working in kitchens since I was fourteen – Thirty-two years now! It was my childhood dream to become a Chef some day and I feel blessed to have achieved that dream. This life has given me much, taken away a lot, and taught me some tough lessons. I have been successful despite myself, and lost everything because of myself. I learned how to cook in the “Old School” tradition, got to go to the greatest culinary school  – The CIA, and was blessed to have met many people who were giving and nurturing. This industry will reward hard work and perseverance, but you have to love it and hate it because you love it. You can’t be halfway in this industry. It consumes you and you become it. The industry shapes your entire life, affects your personal relationships and challenges one with its many rewards and devastating temptations….I never imagined achieving the things I have in this life, or failing like I have as well. Yet, I was able to recreate myself, try to mend some broken fences and become a better person because of everything. I have tried to give back and have many former employees who have gone on to successful careers in this industry. One secret many people don’t know is that I was blessed with three great kids – all boys – who love to cook, eat and are interested in the industry.(I owe their Mother more than I can ever repay for she has always been tasked with the burden of raising them as I worked and worked and worked….) I have tried to thwart that interest at every level. I don’t want my kids to sacrifice what I have. I want them to enjoy their lives and use cooking and dining out as great ways to relax and socialize. I am a Chef and I am proud of that and can’t imagine doing anything else in this life, but I do not wish this life on my children.