Beginning a Culinary Journey

About author / Jerri Manthey

Reality tv star; personal chef; die-hard foodie. Try her vegetarian French onion soup - you won't be sorry

Hello, Jerri Manthey here. �This being my introductory piece for CDKitchen.com, I thought I’d take the opportunity to explain why I’ll be writing my own food column. �Well, if you watched a little show on CBS called Survivor, then you might remember me as the woman everyone loved to hate. �I was the one who busted an Army intelligence officer for sneaking in beef jerky and, more importantly, the woman who outed a chef on national television for not being able to make rice (He has since come out with a cookbook claiming the opposite of course). �

I still, for the life of me, don’t understand the trouble with making rice. �But, come to find out, quite a few folks don’t know how to do it right. �It’s very easy; always remember two parts water to one part rice. �A part can be measured by whatever is handy. �For me, it was a coconut shell.

I'm very excited about being asked to write a column about my life and cooking-related adventures. �You see, food is a very important part of my life. �I'm critical of what goes into my mouth--almost as critical as the tabloids have been about what has come out of it! �What I plan to do with this column is to share with you my favorite recipes, food-related stories, party plans, travel and so on--basically anything and everything in my present and past revolving around food.

For me, food is therapy. �Flavors and aromas make me smile. �Creating pleasure from simple ingredients is one of my passions. �I have become well-known amongst my friends for my impromptu, spontaneous dinner parties. �It’s what I like to do when I’m feeling a little down, when Los Angeles leaves me feeling a little lonely, or sometimes just because I feel like it! �Food has always been my favorite reason to bring people together. �The sound of laughter and a pleasing “Mmm. . .This is incredible” puts life back into perspective for me. �If I’ve satisfied the palates of my friends, then all is well in my world again.

I never helped my mom out in the kitchen while growing up--one of the few things in my life that I regret. �She was the kind of mom who found joy in letting us be kids, playing outside, running around the military base with reckless abandon, knowing that when she yelled for us to come eat dinner, we’d all come running like rats to cheese. �I can still remember the first time I made a boxed cake as a surprise for my mom’s birthday, totally by myself. �It was then I learned the power of following the directions. �

Most of my early experience in the kitchen came when I was in college at the University of Maryland, Munich, Germany. �I taught myself to cook. �I had to--my mom wasn’t around to do it for me and I had gotten used to eating home cooked meals. �The first meal I made for my parents was sweet and sour pork from a Betty Crocker International Foods cookbook. �To this day, my dad asks me to make it for him when I go home to visit. �

And so the culinary journey begins.