Chef for Hire
What is on your menu for this evening? Does it include Gouda and bacon-stuffed pork chops with mashed sweet potatoes? Or how about angel hair pasta with sautéed chicken and artichokes in a lemon butter sauce? Well, it could. That is, if you had Chef Shauna Petty over to prepare dinner.
As a traveling chef, Petty has a desire to come into your kitchen and prepare a meal and teach you in the process. Think of her as a personal chef that is ready to prepare a memorable dinner. “I have a passion for good food and entertaining guests. I have an even greater passion for teaching people how to cook,” she said.
Petty is a highly qualified chef with a degree in culinary arts from Oklahoma State University. She has worked in fine dining restaurants such as The Summit Club in Tulsa and Emeril’s Delmonico Steakhouse in Las Vegas. She has worked as a pastry chef and baker at a vacation guest ranch and apprenticed with a talented cake decorator at Little Pastry Chef’s in Las Vegas.
However all of these qualifications didn’t prepare her for what was next. “I became a parent last year and had to make some changes.”
The idea to become a chef-for-hire came about shortly after having a baby daughter. “I was a stay-at-home mom, and after several months of being at home I realized that I was really missing fine cooking,” she said. A traveling chef is born. “I began putting menus together, and the idea really took off. It has worked out really well; I still get to cook and I get to spend time with my daughter.”
Now, about that cooking. A few of her more popular dishes include truffled, five-cheese mini grilled sandwiches with creamy tomato soup, homemade raviolis with tomato sauce, and chocolate soufflés. “Everybody likes soufflés,” said Petty. “They are always a favorite.”
When referring to her time spent in professional kitchens, Petty says she sometimes misses the excitement. “It’s the thrill of being in the kitchen on Saturday night. The restaurant is packed and there are a huge amount of dishes that need to get out. It’s an adrenaline rush, and sometimes, I miss that.”
She also speaks highly of her time spent in Emeril Lagasse Delmonico Steakhouse. “It was the most pure place for really good food. We prepared all of our own stocks, sauces; everything was made from scratch. If you make a reservation months in advance, you can get into [Delmonico] and have a memorable dinner.”
Petty will be the first to tell you that not every night for her at home is a homemade feast. “I try to make something several times a week. My husband has to be the one to taste new dishes and tell me what he thinks.” This is one lucky guy.
Contact Chef Shauna at www.chefshauna.com and find out how you can have an experience that will teach you and treat you to a fantastic meal.
