Feastivals
was "born" in 1982 in my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. After an inaugural
whirlwind holiday season, the young catering company hit the "Januarys."
I found employment as Sous Chef at The Chicago Caterers where I began
an apprenticeship with Chef Judith Dunbar Hines (then the Executive Chef)
that spanned 2 1/2 years, and established me as both a caterer and a culinary
educator of note.
I took my knives and stockpots to the East Coast where Feastivals became
a well-known byword for the best in sophisticated entertainment in both
Boston and New York. Soon a fixture on the faculty at the Boston Center
for Adult Education I taught myriad courses, from Provençal cooking and
Jewish Holiday fare to Pizza, Chocolate, Chicken, Creole cuisine and Fondue
from 1985 - 95.
Now a familiar face in the New York culinary community, I am a Director
of the New York Association of Cooking Teachers, and an active member
of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. These days
Iım concentrating on consulting for food and wine related products and
restaurants, teaching cooking classes around the country, and leading
food-and-wine focused tours to France and the world.
Feastivals Cooks at Home is my first book. Itıs been "in the works" for
a long time, because the recipes in the book come from my 18 years of
teaching cooking, my 10 years as a full service caterer, and from my lifetime
of eating (and cooking) great food with family and friends. A few years
ago I worked with an agent to sell a proposal to a major publisher. When
the opportunity came to publish a book myself, I decided to take the chance.
The REAL job of promoting a cookbook always truly rests with the author,
so HERE I AM, WORLD!
The
book from contract to release took just under a year to accomplish,
since most of the recipes were already well tested. I chose Wimmer (in
Memphis, TN) to do my book with because I liked the books theyıd produced
for several of my colleagues. They provide wonderful marketing support
by representing me to the major booksellers, by acting as a distributor,
and by acting as my agent on many occasions.
Publishing your own book definitely gives you the chef and author
control over how the finished product looks in every area of publication.
Wimmer provides consultants and coordinators to help with design decisions.
I ended up doing my own photography because itıs something I love to do
and felt confident about. That I saved substantial dollars by being able
to do it was just frosting on the cake.
My target audience for Feastivals Cooks at Home is the people who have
been, are and will be my students avocational cooks. My mission as a
cooking teacher has always been to impart the joy of cooking and of creating
delicious and healthful food for family and friends. The recipes in this
book reflect my three passions in teaching: to eat the freshest possible
foods, and with the seasons; to enjoy wine as an integral part of the
meal; to select and prepare fish simply. There are also dishes and information
to interest the professional chef. Only a few months after publication,
the book is already opening doors for me.
You can find more information about Feastivals Cooks at Home, as well
as the tours I am currently offering on my web site: www.feastivals.com.
My web site also features a cooking school page, with a recipe of the
month, winery of the month and wine education. A trademark of my classes
is "cookinı Jazz" to accompany every class, so each month I feature a
current cd I like. I love to travel, and am enjoying booking cooking classes
in cities far from home. I also love to "guest chef" in restaurants. Perhaps
we will work together some day! À votre Santé!
Author - June C. Jacobs, CCP
Website - feastivals.com