Raves from Real People

ON PERSONAL CHEF MEALS

Channon,

WOW! My diet has really changed. How amazing it is to me to eat such fabulous meals and know I am eating so well.

I feel like a new person with your great diet and juice plus I feel 20 again. I would rate everything a 10 plus.

I am so glad our paths crossed again.       Sue Ray, Portage Mi

Generation to Generation

Channon came to the rescue after mom died and dad needed help with his celiac diet.  She was fun to work with and the meals she prepared were tasty and nutritious.  Sometime later, she was able to help when my busy schedule kept me from taking the time to eat as well as I knew I should.  With her nutritious and delicious meals on hand, I wasn’t as likely to grab something quick but nutritionally deficient.  Channon listens well and works to provide just what you’re looking for.  You’ll find her to be conscientious, friendly and knowledgeable . . . a real find in helping to make the pace and frenzy of our lives more manageable, with nutrition and good health her main priorities.
Dr.Chris Raymond, Kalamazoo Mi

Thanks Chef Channon!

A Family Affair

The dishes  have been fantastic!  The girls are just raving about your potatoes!  And the chicken tarragon was a huge hit. It is such a treat to not only not worry about what to fix for dinner, but to also look forward to it every night.   The size of the dishes has been perfect — we’ve had our dinner and enough for one lunch leftover.

The Romph Family

Joe, Becky,  Camryn, Erin, Kimberly

Kalamazoo Mi

ON DINNER PARTIES

The dinner was FANTASTIC! The food was UNBELIEVABLE! My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our evening (a gift to her for her birthday). She was completely surprised.

No mess, no fuss and the White Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Couliss was to DIE for! Thank you Chef Channon for a wonderful evening!

Another Dinner Party;

I was looking for a unique event to celebrate a recent birthday.  Channon came highly recommended by a trusted friend of mine.  Meeting with Channon was very fascinating!  She is so knowledgeable about so many different cuisines.  I wanted to showcase her extensive expertise in the area of historic food and decided to go with her recommendations for foods originating in 16th C Turkey.  She prepared a banquet of Slow roasted  leg of lamb, rice and lentil pilav, saffron pickles, walnut baklava with orange flower syrup and Turkish coffee and tea all recipes based on her work in ancient Turkish cuisine.  My Mom was rather uncertain if she would like the food since it was different from what she usually eats.  At the end of the dinner, my Mom had gone back not only for seconds, but for a third helping – she loved the food that much.  Another guest is a diabetic and told me after dinner that when he checked his blood glucose, it was much lower than it usually was after dinner.  He also was uncertain about whether he’d enjoy the unusual flavors.  At the end of the evening, he was looking at purchasing one of the spice mixes Channon had brought along and used on the lamb she prepared!  Channon has a definite gift of taking food from antiquity into the modern day and bridging the centuries.  I highly recommend working with her.

Karen Vogelmann, Business Coach

Plainwell, Michigan

www.KarenVogelmann.com

SPECIAL FAMILY EVENTS

Saturday was a great success and so many members of the Ryan family
told me this was the BEST lasagna they’d ever had. And I must agree. Yesterday was more family and today I have collapsed with happy
exhaustion! Michael and I are very interested in your monthly service. Thank you again for making my first big event with the family so special and
stress-free!

Susan Trabucchi and Michael Ryan, South Haven Mi(who are now regular monthly clients!)

50th Anniversary Event

Chef Channon came and prepare a special meal for my parents and me to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. We had a fantastic 5 

course dinner experience, starting with the salad all the way through the Bannanas Foster flambéed at the table. We also enjoyed watching Chef Channon prepare our meal and talking with us about food and food 

preparation. Thanks again Chef Channon for a fantastic experience!

Elizabeth,Judy and Bill Morison 

ON TEACHING

Dear Channon,

Thank you again from Joe, me and the students in the Ethnohistory Seminar for sharing your time and expertise with us on Tuesday evening. The students who I’ve run into since then have reported how interesting and instructive they found the session to be. Personally, I view the session as a successful example of how academics and professional chefs can collaborate to explore a theme that is central to and touches on features of society and culture that interest us all.

Best wishes,Jim

James Palmitessa, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of History
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5344
Tel.: 269-387-4640; Fax: 269-387-4651
E-mail: james.palmitessa@wmich.edu

Monica Harris, Portage Michigan on a Culinary Experiences class with a group of teenage girls and their moms.

The purpose of our get together was for the girls to gain confidence in the kitchen and to feel adventurous with ingredients.  Not only was that accomplished but they had a fabulous time doing it!
Chef Channon did a fabulous job empowering the girls with skilled kitchen techniques. Thank you Chef Mondoux for showing our daughters that cooking can be enjoyable and easy! Finally, my kids have an appreciation of the hard work that goes into preparing healthy meals. Hopefully, they’ll never complain about my cooking again.

ON LOCAL FOOD

The dinner Saturday that Channon from Renaissance Cuisine put together at the Kalamazoo house was amazing. The setting at the Kalamazoo house was warm and elegant, and the food Channon put together was incredible. The amount of effort that she must have gone through to source and prepare so many wonderful local ingredients was not lost on us as we enjoyed not only the meal, but the interesting history she presented. If you have not attended one of her events, we highly recommend it.

Fair Food Matters was very well represented and attendees learned about the great things they are doing with the Can Do Kitchen, Growing Matters Garden, and Future Chefs being highlighted. It made us truly appreciative of this community and all the people who are doing great things in our foodshed.

We were honored to be included as a part of the dinner and we wanted to thank everyone involved.

Sincerely,
Mike and Laura Murphy

ON WRITING

As someone who writes about Turkish cuisine (A Taste of Turkish Cuisine by Nur Ilkin and Sheilah Kaufman), teaches Turkish cuisine, and lectures on Turkey and Turkish cuisine, I could not wait to get Celebration at the Sarayi by Channon Mondoux to read, try, and add to my collection of Turkish cookbooks.

I would definitely recommend this unique, comprehensive, and easily doable collection of fabulous ancient recipes (which have laid hidden for centuries) to any beginner or gourmet cook that is interested in learning about this intriguing cuisine.

The idea that you can watch and learn while the recipes are prepared in front of you, and then duplicate them in your kitchen is a real bonus.  The wealth of information included in this interactive, multi-media cookbook expanded my knowledge, and the wonderful photographs just added to the experience.  A VIRTUAL CULINARY TOUR. ENJOY!  Sheilah Kaufman (author of 27 cookbooks including A Taste of Turkish Cuisine)

ON RECIPES AND PUBLIC SPEAKING

Channon,

You’ve been on my mind for a week after I tried the Green Goddess Soup(found in What’s New).  Oh, was that great.  You’re a genious.

By the way, I got excellent feedback from people about the luncheon (Senior Volunteers).  Thanks so much for all your hard work and sharing your knowledge.  Not only was the food fantastic, but your way of working with folks really made a difference.   That’s huge.

Bobbe Taber, MA, LPC, HHC
Wellness Counselor
Kalamazoo, MI 49024