A Taste of the South with a Big Helping of Soul
Chef Cassy Jones was the personal chef of our family reunion. She was at our house from 7 am to 9 pm. She cooked breakfast, lunch, dinner, did all the shopping, and did ALL the dishes!
Every summer we all return to Dallas for a week-long family vacation. Four families get together for about 20 people that include kids, grandkids, in-laws, and close family friends. As a special treat, Chef Cassy was hired to do the cooking and kitchen cleaning, so all that work didn't fall on just a handful of people. As one of those 'handful of people,' having her there was like a rock-star vacation. Thank you, Chef Cassy.
Our menus were set beforehand. They were emailed and approved by everyone. We had two vegetarians, one paleo, one nut allergy, and a shellfish allergy. Chef took care of everyone. She even enlisted the grandkids to help in hopes they would branch out and taste more food.
Breakfast was always hot and ready at 9 am and served until 10 am. Lunch was served at 2 pm and dinner at 7:30 pm. Just for an example of some of our meals we had dark chocolate Ghirardelli Belgian waffles, Paninis, salmon, enchilada casserole, and the most amazing prime rib. For appies, we ate Bacon Roll-Ups, Alligator Poppers, and Deep Fried Collard Greens. You mean like at the Texas State Fair, Deep Fried Collard Greens? That's right. Chef Cassy won the Big Tex Choice Awards in 2013 with these greens.
The food delish, but what spoke more than her cooking was her professionalism. She was never late, never complained, hustled when one of the kids had accidentally eaten one of the ingredients for a snack, and even ran out to the store when it was discovered that we were missing a key small appliance. She was on her feet for 12-14 hours a day and did it all with an easy smile and full of grace.
We've never had help, and I was a little uneasy about having a stranger in the house. I was worried about nothing. Chef has a smooth, easy-going manner and is a joy to talk to. On our last day, we all gave a champagne toast for Chef because she'd made this family reunion a very special one.
Chef if you read this, thank you for giving me the courage to try and poach my own eggs. I've been doing it since we got home. Delish!! read more