Hello VIVE friends…
We are very excited to announce our next Food Talk event which will be on the 8th of December 2019. If you are not familiar with our Food Talk events, it is a series of stories that aim to help you discover and get some inspiration from interesting individuals who are shaping the food scene. If you wish to attend one of our food talk event at VIVE Cooking School, please sign up to our newsletter here.
We are kicking off our next Food Talk event with Jessica Hall, a former Masterchef Australia contestant. Our lucky participants will have the opportunity to learn and make her amazing audition dish, an impressive dish that embodies her creativity and true talent!
Jessica Hall, Audition Dish for Masterchef Australia
A couple of months ago, we had the pleasure to meet Jessica Hall, a former contestant of Masterchef Australia 2019 and food entrepreneur about to launch her butter company for the pleasure of our tastebuds! And let me tell you, her butter is the new black. Chef Lennox Hastie from Firedoor is already a fan!
Talking to Jess about her experience in Masterchef Australia, she had 2 profound realisations: First, that food was her calling and decided to work under the wings of Lennox Hastie from Firedoor and James Viles from Biota. Smart cookie, if you want to be the best, you got to learn from the best!
Second, that her experience from Masterchef Australia was so different from her life working in a travel agency, that she knew there is a life much more fulfilling and rewarding which was worth pursuing. So it wasn’t long before Jess decided to start her first venture: Well Fed, selling crafted and artisanal butter!
Jessica Hall cooking
Jessica’s interest in butter started about five years ago, as she followed a ketogenic lifestyle, and butter seems to be an interesting way to approach to include fat into her diet.
“I wasn’t happy with the butter you could find in the supermarket shelf, so I started to make my own, and I was making 1-2 compound of butter a week.”
As the idea of making butter for a living, making butter went from “pottering around the kitchen” to “precise recipes down to the last gram”. Jess is serious about her recipes and quality. She explains that she wants to be proud of the butter she produces and that she is, in fact, herself her very first customer.
And yes, Jess won’t compromise on the quality and makes a considerable effort in sourcing the best fresh quality milk she can get.
At the time we are writing this, Jess has finalised her product development and is working on the branding. She has a lot of challenges ahead of her. Starting a business from the ground up is more often than not, difficult but her will inspires us and she is so empowered and genuine as an individual that it’s contagious. This is also the reason why we believe she has the best chance to succeed.
Jessica Hall’s Chocolate Tea Panna Cotta with Spiced Orange Syrup
Like us at VIVE, she believes that food brings people together, and if she can offer the opportunity or excuses for people to cook at home and share a meal, then she has fulfilled her mission.
Like us at VIVE, she believes that food brings people together, and if she can offer the opportunity or excuses for people to cook at home and share a meal, then she has fulfilled her mission.
