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!

Suzy is a Chef Instructor at the Art Institute of California - San Francisco. Her students are working towards their 2 or 4 year college degrees in Culinary Arts.