Ameen first learned to cook when she was a small girl tugging on her mother's kurti. At 17, she decided to cook up her creations at art school. Ameen stewed lithography prints for years, then later, she stirred up colorful hues of the Punjabi city scape, often peppering her brush onto radi wallah food carts, fluorescent pink jalebis, and other tasty treats. Once happily married with kids, Ameen realized that cooking is so similar to painting, yet tastes so much better. One day, despite shelves of cooking books and piles of culinary magazines, she realized there was still something missing. So Ameen latched onto two of her aunts, both of whom were Indian army wives (aka seriously competitive culinary socialites). Ameen's aunts spent much of their lives traversing India from army base to army base, all the while assimilating the culinary styles of myriad different parts of India. From Kashmiri Kabobs of the north, to the creamy coconut prawns of Kerala, their food was the stuff of legends. After years of auntie lessons, word got out amongst Ameen's friends and ultimately their friends. They begged to come over for dinner and bugged her to teach them how to cook. So Ameen did. And now she teaches classes around town.

Anthony Hubbard has been with Chow Foods since 2002. Starting as sous chef for the company, he worked his way through 5 Spot, Hi-Life and Endolyne Joe's kitchens and since 2006 has been Chow Foods' Executive Chef. Anthony guides each of the restaurants with menu planning and execution and serves as a mentor for the chefs and sous chefs. Anthony attended Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island for his formal culinary training. He has traveled far and wide, cooking his way across the country on America's only private luxury train. His exploration of the United States' diverse regions informs his work on the restaurants' rotating festival menus. Anthony also lived and worked in Puerto Rico, where he took to heart the effect food has in uniting community and family, while a stint in New York cemented his love for working in restaurants. His passion for restaurants and cooking—and being among all the action with creative, innovative people—inspires and delights those who work with him. Recently, in a competition with four other top Seattle chefs, Anthony was crowned Seattle's "Prince of Pork" after winning Cochon 555. 

In THE KITCHEN COUNTER COOKING SCHOOL: How a Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks, Kathleen Flinn follows the journey of nine insecure kitchen novices from varying backgrounds as she invades their cabinets, samples their cooking, and arms them with basic cooking skills. The students learn to wield knives, trust their palates, improve their food choices, and shop for food economically—it’s “What Not to Wear” meets Michael Pollan. THE KITCHEN COUNTER COOKING SCHOOL will inspire readers to stop being afraid of the kitchen and never again want to buy pasta in a box that is meant to “approximate” the flavor of pasta tossed in a bit of olive oil and parmesan cheese that, in fact, contains 28 ingredients, most of them fats and preservatives. It’s a stirring, practical and humorous book that includes many easy recipes to get readers cooking and strategies to get the most for your dollar. And most importantly, it shows how boosting your self-confidence in the kitchen can make your entire life easier, cheaper, healthier and more fun.

Kathleen Flinn has been a writer and journalist for twenty years. Her first book was a finalist in the Washington State Book Awards, and she serves on the board of directors for the International Association of Culinary Professionals. She lives in Seattle.

Carol Richardson is the owner of Carol’s Creative Confections. Carol, whose work has been featured in the Sur La Table kitchen catalog, is a trained Wilton Method Cake Instructor. She regularly teaches cake decorating at Michael’s Craft stores and various culinary studios throughout the Puget Sound region.

Carol comes from a long line of outstanding cooks. She began her baking career at the age of 12 by helping her Mom bake cakes for friends and family, and she hasn’t stopped since. Carol is looking forward to helping you enjoy the artistry of cake baking and decorating.

Chef Jacob writes, "The food at the Blackboard Bistro follows my life and career. Having been moved around a lot in the States as a kid, and England as a teenager, I got to see food from a variety of perspectives. There are elements in every dish that take me back to a memory. Sometimes I think I see my life in terms of food: meals shared with family and friends, that great hole-in-the-wall I found on vacation, or dishes I have prepared for others. My food is very personal to me; I will serve nothing that I would not want to eat and share with friends. I hope that you come to the Blackboard Bistro and do the same."

Over the past seventeen years Chef Levine has made Seattle, Washington his home. Throughout those years he has been Executive Chef at Troiani Ristorante Italiano, Vivanda Ristorante in the famed Pike Place Market, The BluWater Bistro’s at both Lake Union and Greenlake, Trattoria Carmine in Madison Park and Isabella Ristorante in downtown Seattle. Chef Levine also worked as the Executive Chef of AQUA by El Gaucho, formerly The Waterfront Seafood Grill in Seattle, Washington, responsible for overseeing all kitchen operations and staff.
Peter has taught a host of cooking classes, both private and professional, including time as a Chef Instructor for the Art Institute of Seattle. He donates his time to numerous local and national charities, frequently giving his time to Farestart and other notable events in the Pacific Northwest and surrounding area. He currently lives in West Seattle with his wife of 20 years Susan Oxholm and their two boys Axel and Henry.

My road to becoming the owner and creator of a chocolate company has the pattern of the gently rolling hills of the Palouse in Eastern Washington where I spent my early life.

I graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture degree from WSU then lived and traveled in Europe. I moved to Seattle when returning to the states and I met and married Guy Peckham. After our first daughter Claire's birth, Guy and I made truffles as Christmas gifts. They were so well received and I had requests for more and I found myself developing a growing delight in learning and exploring every aspect of chocolate. I took classes, experimented, researched, tasted many varieties and eventually ended up with a business.

Heavenly Chocolates has been growing and changing since 1991- so has our family. The new millennium brought us another daughter, Caitlin. She adores chocolate more than the rest of us combined and already has a discerning chocolate palette.

Jason is a local chef who received his training as an apprentice in several restaurants and catering operations in the Seattle area. He has years of experience in the local food scene. He has worked at Campagne, Brasa, Flying Fish, and The Ruins Bistro. Jason has catered with Lowell-Hunt Catering, SAM, and most recently with Cameron Catering, creating and collaborating on hundreds of custom menus for private parties. In recent years Jason has traveled the continent as a Private Chef, worked in Boston and New York City and is now back to Seattle, stalking marketplaces and food stalls and telling tales from the kitchen. These days he is available to prepare bites of all types, for soirees of all types and loves sharing his passion for trying and learning new ways of crafting fantastic foods...

Chef John Nesby and his wife and co-owner Laura have run the acclaimed Mor Mor Bistro and Bar since it opened in Poulsbo in 2004. After meeting as students at the Scottsdale Culinary Institute, John and Laura spent the next decade training in some of the country’s most respected kitchens, including The Four Seasons Scottsdale at Troon North, Joachim Splichal’s Napa Valley restaurant Pinot Blanc, and Portland Oregon’s James Beard Award Winning Paley’s Place. While in the Napa Valley, John also attended the Culinary Institute of America Greystone. John oversees the kitchen, drawing on his classic Italian and French influences to create daily changing menus. John is an active board member with the Poulsbo Farmers Market and enjoys working with local products and producers to offer his customers the best the region has to offer. The cuisine of the Nesby’s stays simple and elegant and true to their roots as third generation business owners in the fantastic Poulsbo community.

John Neumark has cooked and taught in Seattle kitchens for over twenty years. John’s passion for harmony with the seasons, with flavors, with who’s at the table and what’s on the table inspires his efforts. He directed two of the Seattle area’s most beloved restaurants, Serafina and Café Juanita, for fourteen years as both Executive Chef and General Manager. It’s the teaching of technique and sharing of passion that John finds most rewarding. John continues to express his passion for the Northwest’s bounty as an instructor and impromptu chef and caterer. His most recent class was a private one with his ten year old daughter Olivia. They made John’s mother’s famous fried chicken and put up 20 jars of Yakima peach jam.

Karen Binkhorst formerly a Chef at The Hunt Club, Serafina, and Trattoria Michelli, Karen has been the owner of "Home Meals with Karen" since 1997. This talented chef has been teaching classes for over eight years and has cooked professionally for 20 years.

Despite years of training and experience, Pastry Chef Laurie Pfalzer still remembers being a home cook, toiling away in her kitchen discovering the art and craft of pastry and making a lot of mistakes. Her introduction to the well-made pastry was as a child in her mother's kitchen, learning to make her mother's legendary pies and cakes. Her childhood cooking lessons have remained ingrained in her, later combined with the knowledge and skills acquired in culinary school and professional kitchens across the United States.
Laurie has worked in various East Coast pastry kitchens, including the King Arthur Flour Company in Vermont. Laurie joined the Salish Lodge & Spa pastry team in 2006 and was the pastry chef from 2007-2009. In 2010, Laurie created Pastry Craft to make learning how to create great pastry, bread and confections approachable and attainable by the home cook. Laurie encourages lively discussions with students about baking and pastry technique, seasonal produce and specialty products, and she is passionate about teaching not only the “how,” but the “why” of baking and pastry. She believes that beautiful pastries, whether simple or elaborate, can be made in your own home with a little knowledge and dedicated, hands-on guidance.
Laurie is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in New York, where she achieved top honors. She is a member of Seattle Chef's Collaborative and Slow Food.

Lisbet opened Ravishing Radish Catering in 1993.  Lisbet and her team pride themselves on creating beautiful and very edible events both off and on site at their waterfront facility on Lake Union.  From table linens to floral arrangements, Lisbet’s company focuses on full service catering.

Chef Matt discovered his passion for food after several exotic trips abroad. He left a graphic design career at Microsoft to apprentice with a local chef, where he spent a year studying, cooking, teaching, and learning the curriculum of the Culinary Institute of America. He has worked with such notable chefs as Gabriel Claycamp of Culinary Communion, Nick Musser of Icon Grill, Brian O'Connor of Blueacre Seafood, and Greg Atkinson, formerly of Canlis. Matt has attended cooking schools not only in Seattle, but in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and Bali, Indonesia.

Mitra was born in Tehran -Iran in a household with diverse food cultures. Her interest and love for cooking started when she was a young girl. With one parent from northern state of Azerbaijan near Russia and one from the southern state of Fars near the Persian Gulf, the family prepared and celebrated cuisine of many regions. She learned by observing her mother and aunts and then cooking alongside of them. Travelling throughout Iran, she learned firsthand knowledge of spices and herbs that were used in preparation of authentic foods of Persia and neighboring countries and techniques for making them.

Having traveled to other parts of the world, she has learned to cherish the experience of authentic cuisine of different countries and loves to share that with others. She also holds private culinary classes and parties in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine.

Her formal education is in Architecture but cooking has remained a passion.

Chef Patrick Frank has over 25 years of restaurant experience. He has experience in high-end French fine dining to rustic Italian and nearly everything in between. Over the years he has built a huge repertoire of recipes and loves to instill culinary knowledge to all willing students.

French Chef Philippe Thomelin has over 20 years of culinary experience. Growing up in France and then living a number of years in his adopted-homeland, Spain, Philippe became even more passionate about the Mediterranean-style cuisine and wine. This is not only his cooking specialty, but his lifestyle.

Philippe studied at the Curnonsky Culinary School in the Loire Valley of Saumur, France. He has worked in the kitchens of Chalet du Mont d’Arbois, a four-star luxury hotel in Megeve, France; The Wildflower at The Lodge at Vail in Vail, Colorado; Daphne's in London, England; and Restaurant Portofino in Nerja-Malaga, Spain. For many years, he split his time between the Costa del Sol in Spain and the French Alps.

After meeting his future wife on a Spanish beach in 2001, he left his beloved Spain and relocated to the rainy Pacific Northwest in Seattle, Washington. He has since worked as a Sous chef at both Cascadia Restaurant and Il Terrazzo Carmine. His talent and professionalism have also made him a popular choice to assist and fill in for other local restaurants, including Rover's and Voila Bistrot.

In Pranee's generation, most kids in Thailand helped out by doing chores in the kitchen. Her regular assignments were grating coconut, pounding curry paste, and cooking rice. At age 12, Pranee was given more responsibility as a substitute cook of the house. Her mother was a chef of the village and was famous for her fish cakes.

When Pranee moved to Seattle, she brought along a mortar and pestle and filled up her kitchen with Thai herbs, spices and cooking equipment. "The best way to enjoy eating and cooking Thai food is to cook and share it with friends" says Pranee. "Thai food is everyone's favorite and they are not patient for the next feast; therefore they started asking me for Thai cooking lessons. Teaching cooking is fun because you share skills and experiences, laughter and the excitement of each result".

Pranee is a member of IACP, and enjoys teaching Thai cooking throughout Washington. Pranee visits Thailand annually to collect and preserve family and home town recipes. She also hones her culinary skills by participating in many classes, seminars, and conferences. When she is not teaching, she enjoys helping her community by fund raising with her Thai cooking and working on her cookbook and her blog Pranee's Thai Kitchen, www.ilovethaicooking.wordpress.com

Focusing on "locally derived, seasonally inspired" cuisine has been Chef Caswell's hallmark for more than a decade.

Caswell first began cooking professionally in 1994, shortly after graduating from Vassar College with a degree in environmental studies and comparative religion. Caswell, who had been planning on becoming an environmental lawyer, uncovered his true calling during a ski-season baking job in Taos, NM.

After several restaurant stints in Taos, NM and Seattle, WA, and training in a baking and pastry program at Dubrulle Culinary Arts School in Vancouver, BC, Caswell set out for New York City. There, Caswell cut his teeth with such luminaries as Jean-Georges Vongrichten, David Pasternack, and Dan Barber, from whom he learned the importance of technique, high-quality ingredients, and simplicity.

From 1998-2005, Caswell was Chef de Cuisine at the renowned East Hampton restaurant Nick & Toni's. On Long Island, Caswell was inspired by by the availability of seasonal produce from local farms, day-boat fish from Montauk fisherman, and the acre-and- a-half organic garden behind the restaurant. His work at Nick & Toni's earned the restaurant three stars from The New York Times.

In 2005, Caswell made the decision to return to the Pacific Northwest. As Caswell said "I've always been enamored with the variety of ingredients in the Pacific Northwest. Not only are there four true seasons here, but also many micro-seasons. This encourages me to become creative with ingredients that are available for very short periods of time."

In Seattle, Caswell immersed himself in the local food community. As Executive Chef at the Stumbling Goat Bistro, Caswell became a regular at local farmers' markets. He also regularly visited the farms, fisheries, and cheesemakers that he supported to understand exactly how and why our local food is produced the way it is. At the Stumbling Goat, Caswell garnered accolades for his homey yet sophisticated dishes.

In 2010, Caswell opened emmer&rye in a restored Victorian house on the top of Queen Anne Hill to further his vision of "locally derived, seasonally inspired" cuisine. Here, Caswell creates dishes that showcase the best ingredients the Pacific Northwest has to offer.

Caswell's involvement with the local community and its food systems extends beyond the kitchen. From 2006-2009, Caswell served as president of the nonprofit Chefs Collaborative. Today, Caswell continues to support the organization as a volunteer and member. Caswell also regularly participates in fundraising efforts for various local organizations, such as FareStart and the Cascade Harvest Coalition. Caswell serves as a guest educator for food education programs and initiatives, such as Beecher's Good Food Kids program, UW's Food and the Environment, and WSU's CAIRN school. Currently he is serving on the national Board of Directors for Chefs Collaborative, where he is extending the mission of the organization to new regions of the country.

Sureyya Gokeri is from Turkey close to the Syrian border on the coast, where Turkish food is a blend of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern styles. She loves the richness and uniqueness of her culture and kitchen and is generous with her knowledge of healthy ingredients and quick cooking techniques. She has worked in Turkish restaurants, and has had a business selling Turkish imports with her husband for 17 years. She loves dealing with people every day, but says that it’s more fun to cook!

Chef Tom Black has extensive high-end restaurant as well as teaching and personal chef experience. The former executive chef and general manager of the Barking Frog restaurant at Willows Lodge in Woodinville and The Restaurant at Alderbrook Resort on Hood Canal, Tom is both a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute and a veteran of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. His restaurant experience also includes work as the as sous chef at the Seattle Sheraton under Monique Barbeau and as the chef of Fullers restaurant. Tom’s awards include the 2001 Zagat Best Northwest Cuisine, the 2003 Washington Wine Commission’s Restaurant of the Year (for Barking Frog).

Tom’s influence on Seattle has been strong, with articles on his creativity in Sante, Bon Appetit, Nation’s Restaurant News, WHERE – Seattle, and Northwest Palate. In the spring of 2004 Tom was asked to cook at the James Beard House in NYC as part of a Winemaker / Chef Series Dinner. Tom has been a FareStart guest chef on numerous occasions, has taught many classes for Operation Front Line (an organization focused on teaching culinary skills to kids aged seven to twelve at Seattle youth centers), and is also involved with the Fred Hutchinson Chef’s Gala, the American Liver Foundation, Auction of Northwest Wines & many other charitable associations.

Tom’s culinary instruction experience includes teaching at the New England Culinary Institute, multiple cooking classes over the years for a variety of kitchens, and full-time employment as a culinary instructor for the hands-on cooking school Culinary Communion. Most recently, Tom has been traveling the world as a personal chef: cooking on yachts in the Caribbean, private estates in South African wine country, and more. He is currently getting ready to launch Restaurant Bea in the Madrona neighborhood.

Victoria Castillo is a Seattle native and University of Washington graduate; after graduation she worked for Baci Artful Catering. After a year of catering she yearned to sharpen her culinary skills further so she moved to San Francisco to attend the California Culinary Academy where she graduated in 2002 with honors. Chef Castillo spent her culinary school externship working abroad at Badia a Coltibuono in Tuscany, Italy. On her days off she helped with the estate vegetable garden, tasted freshly pressed olive oil at olive mills, visited sheep farms and hunted for truffles with two Italian truffle hunting dogs. She has been cooking professionally for bakeries, catering companies, restaurants and private clients for over 10 years. Whether picking strawberries, planting pumpkin seeds, rolling out fresh pasta or searing fish, Victoria has been enchanted with food and its origins right from the start. Over the years she has interned for Plum Forest Farm and volunteered at Seattle Tilth's Children's Garden. Chef Victoria Castillo enjoys sharing her love of seasonal and whole foods cooking with her family, students and clients. She teaches culinary classes in and around the Seattle area and is the Chef & Author of the food blogs: honey dumplings & my gluten-free belly.