Lauren DeFore
Lauren DeFore is a Georgia girl, now calling northern Arizona home. She's the mother of two-Iggy, her inquisitive six-year-old boy, and Millie, her firecracker daughter who just turned one. Lauren is excited to don the chef coat, just like her Chef hubby, Harley Guy, and show everyone what a Southern girl knows about grilling.
Gayle Taylor
I love to entertain and cook beautiful and healthy food for the people in my life. Cooking has been a lifelong passion for me and is one way for me to express my care for friends and family. I started out playing with food with my mother in her kitchen when I was a child. She always allowed me to have fun cooking and baking even when I broke something in the process – for her, it was about the time we spent together having a good afternoon.
It’s all about presenting well prepared food beautifully as you always “eat with your eyes” first. It doesn’t hurt if people nosh a bit on appetizers and wine before the build up to the dinner itself. My rule for dinners at chez Taylor is that it will take us as long to eat the food as it took me to prepare it. Some of my dinners have gone past midnight as a result.
Most of my dinners are journeys to different places or themed to the food. I love to make French and other European food and serve small portions of art on each plate. This is what I am known for in Sedona. I also use fresh and healthful ingredients and have a lovely edible flower and herb garden!
I look forward to embracing this opportunity at the Finale in October!
It’s all about presenting well prepared food beautifully as you always “eat with your eyes” first. It doesn’t hurt if people nosh a bit on appetizers and wine before the build up to the dinner itself. My rule for dinners at chez Taylor is that it will take us as long to eat the food as it took me to prepare it. Some of my dinners have gone past midnight as a result.
Most of my dinners are journeys to different places or themed to the food. I love to make French and other European food and serve small portions of art on each plate. This is what I am known for in Sedona. I also use fresh and healthful ingredients and have a lovely edible flower and herb garden!
I look forward to embracing this opportunity at the Finale in October!
Val Aldrich
My name is Val Aldrich
I am a 54 yr old house painter, and have been painting for 37 yrs off and on. I am from Massachusetts and moved to the area 9 yrs ago to continue my work as a Scenic Photographer and maybe paint a house or two. A thousand photos and 30 buildings later, I am still here.
I started cooking at age 6, beside my mom and grandma, and have been cooking and canning ever since. No formal training just fresh food packed with flavor!!
I am a 54 yr old house painter, and have been painting for 37 yrs off and on. I am from Massachusetts and moved to the area 9 yrs ago to continue my work as a Scenic Photographer and maybe paint a house or two. A thousand photos and 30 buildings later, I am still here.
I started cooking at age 6, beside my mom and grandma, and have been cooking and canning ever since. No formal training just fresh food packed with flavor!!
Suzie Dunn
From sandbox creations to earning the Girl Scout Cooking Badge, I have enjoyed working with food. We had a family garden, my grandmothers and mother were excellent cooks and canners and there always seemed a reason to bake or cook for someone else. Marriage brought the opportunity to participate in a city-wide gourmet club for 10 years. I catered for friends and began teaching adults gourmet cooking at a technical school. Upon earning a degree in dietetics and nutrition, and until retirement in 2000, I had a career in administration and consulting to long term and acute care kitchens.
Life in Sedona has given me many opportunities to share good food and nutrition with friends. It’s funny—we don’t know any bad cooks here!!! In 2003, my husband Jeff and I began writing a column in the local newspaper, The Villager. We cover food from every angle and have been blessed by the reception of that. Our Sedona United Methodist Church has given us many opportunities to participate in themed dinners. So here I am, at the doorstep of vying for amateur chef-ship. Thank you all for the opportunity to represent Northern Arizona Restorative Justice on October 1, at Tlaquepaque.
Life in Sedona has given me many opportunities to share good food and nutrition with friends. It’s funny—we don’t know any bad cooks here!!! In 2003, my husband Jeff and I began writing a column in the local newspaper, The Villager. We cover food from every angle and have been blessed by the reception of that. Our Sedona United Methodist Church has given us many opportunities to participate in themed dinners. So here I am, at the doorstep of vying for amateur chef-ship. Thank you all for the opportunity to represent Northern Arizona Restorative Justice on October 1, at Tlaquepaque.