Fall 2006 Contributors

Robert Aguilera is General Manager & Import Cheese Buyer for Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge, MA.

Jonathon Alsop has been writing about wine since 1989. He is author of the wine column "In Vino Veritas" as well as many articles for La Vie Claire, Cultured Living, Beverage Magazine, the Associated Press, and others. In addition to writing, Jonathon lectures on wine, conducts wine tasting classes, and hosts wine events around the country. www.invinoveritas.com

Deborah Bezahler, photographer, took her first photos in 1993 at age 60 while traveling in Japan. Since food was a long-time passion for her and her husband visiting restaurants, food markets and food related stores were de rigeur. Numerous future trips to Asia, Europe, Turkey, Cuba, Morocco, etc. led to her developing a distinctive style of food photography.

Vicki Lee Boyajian - Vicki Lee's, Belmont, MA

T. Susan Chang is a New England-based freelance writer and a Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow. She writes a monthly cookbook column for the Boston Globe food section, and her articles on cooking, gardening and nutrition appear in a variety of national and regional publications.

Irene Costello - After 20 years in the corporate world, Irene broke out to develop her passion for cooking. She earned her masters degree in gastronomy and a certificate in culinary arts from Boston University. She also has a certificate in wine studies from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust. Irene joined Ruby Chard as a managing partner in 2002 bringing a unique combination of culinary and business experience. Irene earned her undergraduate degree from Georgetown University. www.rubychard.com

Berta A. Daniels, photographer, has dedicated herself to creating fresh and visually exciting images. A native of the Boston area, Berta attended the Art Institute of Boston, where she majored in Photography and Sculpture. For more than fifteen years Berta has been working as a freelance lifestyle photographer for magazines, books and other publications as well as corporate and private clients, with a focus on photography for the music industry, food and the restaurant industry, travel, portraiture and fashion.

Her fine art photography has been described as theatrical, painterly, spiritually transformational and richly provocative. As she explores the figure in the landscape, she invites the viewer to become a co-walker with her and her subject on a journey through light and shadow. You can view more of Berta's images on the web at www.badcam.com .

Rosie DeQuattro - Free-lance writer, Rosie DeQuattro, began her love-affair with food as a child when her mother sent her off to school with bread and chocolate sandwiches for lunch. The envy of all her bologna-&-mayo-eating school mates, Rosie still eats and cooks the kind of peasant Italian food considered by many today as "gourmet." Rosie contributes a monthly food column, The Culinary Beat, for The Middlesex Beat, an arts and entertainment guide.

Julia Humes - After a brief stint as a pastry cook at Radius, Michael Schlow's restaurant Boston, Julia decided to seriously pursue her passion for food by enrolling in Boston University's culinary certificate and Master's of Liberal Arts in Gastronomy Degree programs. Last fall, Julia moved from Boston to San Francisco where, besides enjoying the bountiful produce and great restaurants, she is finishing up her thesis and working as a cookbook editor on the Williams-Sonoma books for Weldon Owen Publishing. Her other writing has been published in The Boston Globe and Dining Out magazine. She can be reached at: humes@comcast.net.

John Lee is the manager of Allandale Farm (Boston's Last Working Farm), which specializes, in naturally-grown local produce. He occasionally writes for local news outlets and is deeply involved with farming and locally-grown issues in Massachusetts.

Joan MacIsaac - As a restaurant chef, catering business owner and cooking class instructor, Joan brings more than 20 years professional culinary experience to Ruby Chard as Chef/ Managing Partner. After rising to executive chef at the James Beard award-winning Dahlia Lounge in Seattle, Joan returned to her hometown, Boston and founded Ruby Chard in 1996. Currently, Joan is consulting for The Food Project, working within their catering services and teaching youth a curriculum in culinary arts. www.rubychard.com

Dr. Marion Nestle is a professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University, New York.

Gwenn Schurgin O'Keefe, M.D., F.A.A.P., is Founder and Chief Editor of Pediatrics Now (www.pediatricsnow.com), creator of Your Child's Health Blog (www.townonline.com/blogs/childHealth) and editor for the pediatrics site at BellaOnLine (http://pediatrics.bellaonline.com) and is a syndicated columnist seen monthly on New England Cable News' Good Morning Live.

Dr. O'Keeffe practices urgent care pediatrics with Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates and lives in the MetroWest area with her husband and 2 daughters. She can be reached at drgwenn@pediatricsnow.com.

Elizabeth Gawthrop Riely, writer, edits the Radcliffe Culinary Times, newsletter of the Schlesinger Library at Harvard, on the history of food. Her dictionary, The Chef's Companion (John Wiley & Sons), in print for 20 years, is now in its 3rd edition, marking changes in the edible landscape. You may find her at the Brookline or Newton Farmers' Market.

Jill Rose, writer, has worked in magazines for 15 years and has lived in the Boston area most of her life. She is known for making elaborate, sometimes experimental, desserts in her small kitchen on the North Shore, where she lives with her husband and two daughters.

Jerry Ryan, an Irish native, received both his Culinary and Foodservice Management degrees from Johnson & Wales, in Providence RI. His experiences include; hotel positions in Ireland, Germany and Boston; South Seas Plantation, Captiva Island, FL; RI Country Club; and area caterers to include, "Cuisine Chez Vous". One of Jerry's favorite experiences was working as a private chef for Mr. Bill Koch and the First all-women's team of the America's Cup 12-Metre Yacht Races in 1995. He spent 10 years as a Chef Instructor at Newbury College in Brookline, and longs to return to academia - ["Knowledge IS Power"]. He is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Vocational Education from Fitchburg State College, while offering "ServSafe" Sanitation Certification Courses to the Hospitality Industry.

Emily Shartin worked full-time as a newspaper reporter for several years before recently deciding to enroll in the pastry program at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts. In between classes, she continues writing as a freelancer. She can be reached at emilyshartin@yahoo.com.

Edible Communities co-founder, Carole Topalian, travels the world with a finely tuned photographer's eye. Her ability to communicate through photographs brings the Edible Communities mission to life as visual feast, and the pages of our newsletters and websites testify to this. In addition to her work as photographer for Edible Communities, Carole also serves as creative director for the company, ensuring the highest possible level of quality and consistency in each of our printed newsletters and websites. During the 1980s, Carole owned a Los Angeles-based multimedia company where she produced several award-winning advertising and promotional campaigns for corporate America. In the 1990s, she did graduate work in depth psychology at Pacific Graduate Institute and left the corporate world behind. Today, she enjoys life in the very rural Ojai Valley, where she is able to ride her bike daily and garden at will. Her fine art photographs have been exhibited in over 70 shows throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. Visit www.topalianphoto.com for more information.

Kathleen White is a recent MBA graduate from Babson College. She has spent the last ten years working to preserve and build sustainable agriculture systems, land conservation efforts and healthy nutrition for kids and seniors. She enjoys seeking out our region's hidden gems of farms and restaurants for good, fresh, locally produced foods. Kathleen can be reached at kwhite1@babson.edu.

Kristin Widican has always followed her passion for good food and good stories. After studying the food culture of 19th century France at Barnard College, Columbia University, she completed her formal training in the culinary arts at the Culinary Institute of America. Kris recently received her M.S. in nutrition communication at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, and now works in Boston as a personal chef and nutritionist. She can be reached at kris@kwcuisine.com.