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Ojai Valley News: Diane Forley for White House Chef
By JULIETTE ROSSANT The Ojai Valley News reports on Diane Forley's nomination for White House Executive Chef:  [EDITOR'S NOTE: reprinted here with the kind permission of The Ojai Valley News.] LOCAL CHEF WHITE HOUSE BOUND? By George Keenen  She never took a cooking lesson in her life, but she may end up cooking in the White House.Diane Forley is one of 40 female chefs nominated to become the first female White House executive chef. Forley, a former chef in New York City and author of a cookbook, is married to Ojai Valley Inn executive chef Michael Otsuka. The list of chefs was created by a foodie blog, superchefblog.com. Votes can be cast there. The winner does not automatically get the job, of course. It’s more in the way of a proposal to Mrs. Bush. "The blog will present a list of finalists to her as an option," said Forley, "so she can increase her talent pool the next time she is looking for an executive chef." So it’s basically a promotion by a blog. But it’s a well-known and well-connected blog, and they’re serious about this. Among its 40 nominees are restaurant icons like Alice Waters and Nancy Silverton, so it’s no mean thing to be nominated. It’s an honor. Some of the nominated chefs are taking this competition seriously. In fact, some are campaigning to win. "I think what’s happening is that a lot of chefs that have restaurants are e-mailing to their guest lists, asking for votes," said Forley. "If you have list of 5,000 customers and you ask them to please vote for me, people are going to vote. It depends on how organized people are in campaigning." But Forley takes it lightly. "I think it’s been a fun exercise, if it’s actually going to happen," she said. Forley’s restaurant, Verbena, was an upscale 50-seater with seasonal cuisine. She was the founder, owner and chef, and, after ten years of hard work and long hours, she closed it and went on sabbatical. She seems more interested now in spending time with her 10-week-old son and her two-year-old daughter. Forley did not go to cooking school, training primarily in Manhattan restaurants. "I also did an apprenticeship in France," she said. "I worked in a pastry shop, I took bread-making classes and I worked in two restaurants, all in six months." Her unusual cookbook, Anatomy of a Dish, came out in 2002. It’s a repertoire of her recipes from Verbena. "I researched the botanical origins of fruits and vegetables and organized book from a botanical perspective," she said. "That basically meant looking at ingredients from their plant families and exploring their plant families as a description of their flavor. For example, in the sunflower and daisies family you’d find bitter-flavored vegetables like artichoke, endive, chicory and radicchio. I incorporate these facts so there’s a mixture of culinary and botanical information in my recipes."  Forley sounded unsure if she’d take the White House job if it were offered. She’d first have to find out what it really entails, she said. And she’s not campaigning for it.But her husband is campaigning for her. "He supports me so he can be the First Husband of the White House kitchen," said Forley. Click here to |
posted by Juliette Rossant at 4/11/2005 05:17:00 PM
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