About Chef Suzy

Suzy Farnworth – Owner of Kids, Fire and Knives

I got my own set of measuring cups and mixing bowls when I was 6 years old. I fell in love with the kitchen – where I could be independent, creative and have fun. When I was 12 years old - my family left aboard a 41 foot sailboat for a year to sail around the Pacific Ocean – across the equator to the South Pacific! One day I saw a coconut walking down the beach. Upon closer examination – I discovered there is a creature called a “Coconut Crab” who can carry an entire coconut back to his house! I also learned that we could make a coconut cream pie using fresh coconut. We had no whisk to beat the eggwhites – but 4 kids could whip the whites in about 20 minutes using a fork! Experiencing flavors and foods from around the Pacific piqued my curiosity and inspired me to explore global culinary traditions.

After graduating from Santa Clara University with a BA in English, I earned my California State Multiple Subject Teaching Credential through UC Berkeley Graduate Program. After a few years of teaching – I enrolled in the California Culinary Academy Chef Training Program. Voila – my passion for teaching kids and cooking have melded into a business where I really do specialize in Kids Fire and Knives!

Suzy designs and teaches week long classes for Junior Chef Cooking Camp™. She has taught over 150 classes to beginning chefs and beyond. More than 100 students have moved onto the Intermediate level – where previously learned skills are built upon and added to. New classes are being invented all the time!

My favorite thing about working with kids – is that I can predict about 80% of what will happen during a class. The other 20% of the time I am both delighted and surprised at the contributions that the kids make to the class - their funny stories, their interesting questions and their willingness to make mistakes and try new things!