BFF with the Chef

Aloha friends and foodies, and welcome to season five. The first guest of this season is Joe Gatto, a private chef who hosts the culinary TV series From Scratch, currently debuting on Pluto TV. Bringing his passion for scratch cooking, big personality and knowledge of film, Joe has created a truly unique cooking show that goes all out to show you just how far he's willing to go to make everything from scratch. Joe is also the author of Seriously from Scratch.

Today I'm interviewing Jessica Gavin, the incredibly accomplished blogger behind JessicaGavin.com, a food blog and website that focuses on the science behind cooking. Jessica is a certified culinary scientist and a certified food scientist with a passion for helping home cooks get a good dinner on the table. Her first cookbook is Easy Culinary Science for Better Cooking, and she has a recipe app. She recently quit her job to become a full time food media entrepreneur.

Today I'm interviewing Belqui, the blogger behind Belqui's Twist, a food blog that focuses on Latin fusion comfort food with a twist. Belqui, an avid home cook for 10 years, started her food blog just over a year ago. Cooking was a way for her to keep herself upbeat through the harrowing journey of working through her son's autism diagnosis. After many years of pouring her heart into her recipes, she would share them with the world.

Today I'm interviewing Amanda Kanashiro, the blogger behind Eat at Our Table, a food blog dedicated to helping others live a gluten free lifestyle. Several years ago, Amanda was diagnosed with celiac disease, which requires a strict gluten free diet. She works full time as a food blogger and has discovered through blogging a community of friends and fellow autoimmune patients.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Ed Harris, winner of Food Network's Chopped Turbo Powered season four and Iron Chef International. He's also appeared as a chef on 24-hour Restaurant Battle, which his team won. For more than 20 years, Chef Ed has progressed from Saucier all the way up to Executive Chef. This eclectic background has allowed him to currently work as a consultant chef where he plays an active role in the planning, supervision, and creative aspects involved in the food industry.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Tristan B. Jones, an American chef who currently lives in Prague. It was curiosity of food that inspired him to attend Le Cordon Bleu in Orlando, Florida. From there, he's traveled around the world to work in restaurant kitchens where he could hone his culinary skill. He's cooked for presidents, dignitaries, and celebrities. In 2019, he decided to write a book about his life experience in a raw memoir, Blood, Bones and Blisters: A Culinary Rant, available on Amazon.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Joshua Tango, a chef who spent nearly 10 months working at the French Laundry. Josh served four years in the United States Marine Corps infantry. After his time in service, he decided he wanted to cook professionally. Josh worked his way up in the restaurant business for five years until he got the offer to work at the French Laundry. Currently, Chef Josh works at the Charter Oak Restaurant in Napa Valley.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Darnell Ferguson, AKA Super Chef. Darnell's love of cooking started from adolescence and would continue as he graduated from Sullivan University in Kentucky with a degree in the Culinary Arts. In 2012, Darnell began a series of popups serving breakfast within existing restaurants that served only lunch and dinner. He opened his first Super Chef's restaurant in 2015 and now has three locations. He is the winner of the 2018 Food Network Ultimate Thanksgiving Challenge

Today I'm interviewing Chef Cristina Nishioka, the Honolulu based pastry chef behind the Instagram account Beyond Pastry. A graduate of baking school, Cristina started out her life as an apprentice baker, eventually working her way to become the general manager. Her career has taken her to Qatar & Singapore. In 2018, she won Cookie Corner’s recipe contest and has since become their Research and Development chef. She also works full time as a pastry chef at 3660 on the Rise Honolulu.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Rashad Armstead, a Bay area chef who has dedicated his craft to exquisite cuisines and exceptional customer service. Chef Rashad's passion for cooking started when he watched his mom prepare secret recipes, deploying her knowledge of flavor and imparting on him the wisdom of great taste. Chef Rashad, winner of the Food Network's Chopped show, currently owns two restaurants, Grammie's Down Home Chicken and Seafood, and Crave BBQ.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Martel Stone, Executive Sous Chef of Kith/Kin in Washington, DC. Chef Martel, a native of Philadelphia, started his life journey in the Navy. His love of serious cooking began with a single French omelet challenge. Thirty dozen eggs later, he knew he had found what he wanted to do with his life. His vast culinary experience led to a key leadership role at Kith/Kin, a restaurant that Eater DC has named one of the top essential restaurants.

Today I'm interviewing Kaumudi Marathé, the cookbook author and chef behind Un-Curry, a company that is dedicated to sharing the richness of India's culinary traditions through cooking classes, catering, and popups. An author of several cookbooks, she applied for a job teaching cooking on ships and was thrilled to discover it was for America's Test Kitchen. Two years later, Kaumudi decided to take the plunge and apply for a job as a senior book editor.

Today I’m interviewing Trent Pheifer, the blogger behind Store Bought is Fine, a blog where he has chronicled his way cooking his way through Ina Garten’s entire recipe repertoire. Trent started this project in 2015 after he got fed up with online recipes that hadn't been tested and also because he realized he didn't have the basic skills needed to be successful in the kitchen. Since then, Trent has made more than 800 of Ina’s recipes, learned some food world fame, and expanded his cooking skills.

Today I'm interviewing Chef Hailley Field, the founder of HomeCooked, an on-demand chef service that has been in operation for more than a year. She's been featured on the Food Network, in Angeleno Magazine, LA Confidential Magazine's The List alongside Beyoncé, and Voyage LA. She's also appeared as a guest chef at the Hollywood Farmers' Market, as well as at some of LA's popular food and cooking events, including Foodie Con, and Live & Dine LA.

Today, I'm interviewing Chef Kelsey Morgan, a pastry chef currently working in Honolulu, Hawaii. Kelsey originally started her life by getting a degree in theater arts. She followed her passion and attend the Culinary Institute of America, where she got her degree in baking & pastry arts. Since graduating, Kelsey has moved around the world, working in various kitchens in order to continue to hone her skills. Her philosophy to professional baking is to approach each task with integrity and joy.