At work they are masters in the kitchen, creating mouth-watering dishes, breads baked with love and vegetable dishes freshly-picked and prepared to highlight their seasonal flavors. At home, these local chefs face obstinate toddlers or a lack of someone to cook for, yet they don’t let these challenges keep them down.
Their advice? Turn up the music, invite a friend or neighbor over and don’t take too much feedback from a small human still learning to love organic produce.
Personal Chef and Geneva Native Dana Boswell
When chef Dana Boswell is at home in her kitchen in Big Rock, dinner might include vegetables grown in her garden, fresh eggs from the hens roaming her property or even a sloppy Joe made from venison meat procured from her husband’s recent hunting expedition.
Though she grew up in Geneva, today she lives on more than an acre of land where she also cares for goats and barn cats. Boswell and her husband raise chickens for eggs as well as meat, adding they haven’t purchased package chicken meat or eggs in some time.
Boswell followed her passion for the culinary arts to Elgin Community College and worked in several restaurants before deciding she needed another way to express her love for cooking. She began offering her services as a personal chef and has slowly built a strong business called Body Fuel by Dana.
As a personal chef, she shops and prepares meals for her clients, whether it’s a busy couple looking to ensure they’re eating well or a family that wants a nutritious meal on the table. According to Boswell, most families are surprised to learn a personal chef is affordable and isn’t limited as a luxury.
“I have clients who want to eat better but they don’t know what to eat. That’s where I come in, with a whole foods diet and lifestyle,” Boswell said. “I love cooking good food for you.”
Each week, Boswell and her clients collaborate on a menu, allowing the chef time to shop for ingredients before she steps into her client’s homes to start cooking.
At home, she and her husband, John Boswell, love to be in the kitchen together preparing meals. John shares a passion for the culinary arts and he is the executive director of campus dining for Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.
Their biggest challenge in the kitchen isn’t what to make for dinner, but rather how to encourage their toddler to share their love for food.
“We feed her what we eat,” Dana Boswell said. “When we’re at the dinner table, we all eat the same foods.”
Dawn Phillips, owner of Brown Butter Café
When Dawn Phillips heads home at the end of the day, dinner might look like a simple salad or grilled meats. Phillips, the owner of Brown Butter Café in St. Charles said she saves her cooking creativity for the restaurant known for its fresh-baked, gluten-free creations. Phillips said she’s happiest baking.
“If I had all the time in the world, I’d spend it baking with yeast,” Phillips said. “There is something almost therapeutic about making croissants, cinnamon rolls, pretzels, bagels, or fresh bread. Watching dough come alive is incredibly rewarding. Croissants, especially, are a labor of love but every buttery layer feels worth the effort.”
Over the years it seems all her favorite baking tools and bowls have found their way to the café. Phillips said the café’s kitchen is truly another home where she can fulfill her need to feed others.
“The joy has never been on my plate — it has always been watching someone else’s face light up after the first bite,” Phillips said.
She also loves exploring foods from different cultures. On a recent day off she turned up the music, poured herself a margarita and made a Mexican feast: grilled carne asada topped with fresh guacamole and wrapped in homemade tortillas.
“I even baked a peach cobbler in honor of my mom, who taught me that feeding people is one of the purest ways to tell them they’re loved,” Phillips added.
There was just one problem, in all her time chopping, sauteing and stirring, she realized she had made a banquet all for a table of one. It was a poignant moment as she gazed out over the sizable spread.
“It was bittersweet because there wasn’t a table full of people to enjoy it with,” Phillips said. “I realized that I miss cooking for others more than I miss eating good food.”
Managing her own restaurant isn’t just a job, it truly is a happy place where she can share her love for food with others.
“People often think we’re in the food business, but I think we’re really in the hospitality business. Food just happens to be the language we speak,” Phillips said. “Whether it’s a donut, a breakfast burrito, our homemade bread or a meal made at home, my favorite ingredient has always been making someone feel cared for.”
Dining and Cooking