In reality, when most women reach 60, they start thinking of slowing
down a bit. Maybe retirement. Maybe travel. Maybe more time with the
grandchildren. But oh no, not Jean Mackenzie!
At 61, she decided to start her own new business, establish a
professional guild, and champion a growing food movement. That was almost seven
years ago—and she hasn’t slowed down one iota since.
Her story is a fascinating one: On a whim, in her sixth decade of life,
Jean decided to take a cheesemaking class through the Pennsylvania Association of Sustainable Agriculture
just for the fun of it. Instead, she discovered a real aha moment…and her “true
calling,” as she puts it.
“I suddenly felt a great sense of urgency to move forward with this
newfound passion,” says Jean. “I had been a gourmet cook all my adult life,
growing and canning vegetables from my garden, baking breads and desserts, and
cooking fun dinners for our friends. Making cheese pulled all of my interests
together: my love of food, my love of people, and my independent spirit.”
Mackenzie Creamery
was born, and it now churns out 13 different gourmet flavors of goat cheese,
plus dulce de leche and ricotta. It has become so successful that Jean has won
15 national awards so far for her cheeses and two awards for running a green
and sustainable business. She is also a founding board member of the Ohio Cheese Guild and sits on the
Board of Directors for the Cuyahoga
Valley Countryside Conservancy.
Jean admits that her mother and maternal grandmother (whom she called
"GB") were both gourmet cooks and had the biggest impact on her early
love of food. In fact, Jean would often visit her grandmother at her island home on
Eleuthera in the Bahamas where GB would cook with fresh ingredients from her
year-round garden and fish they had plucked from the sea each day. Her
grandfather also contributed by grafting a sour orange tree with a grapefruit
tree, which resulted in the “most amazing fruit from which GB would make the
most delicious marmalade jam.”
Later in life, Jean’s growing love of food was influenced the most by
the instructors she had at different cooking schools, including fellow Dame
Joanne Weir, Sarah Leah Chase, and Jacques Pepin. And as she traveled, she also discovered a
plethora of culinary gems, most notably at the extraordinary resort, Anse Chastanet, on the island of St. Lucia in the French West Indies.
“The chef there was actively involved with the island’s farmers and
created a culinary delight every night,” reminisces Jean. “I dined on fresh
seafood on the beach restaurant, Tour au Diable, and on locally raised fruits
(avocados, passion fruit, guavas, papayas, and coconut to name just a few!) in
their open air Treehouse.”
Today, Jean enjoys eating a little closer to home. In fact, the
Welshfield Inn, which is just seven minutes away, has become her “kitchen away
from home.” In fact, their executive chef Chris “Dome” Johnson created a salad
using Mackenzie Creamery chèvre and named it the “Mackenzie Salad.”
When not eating out, Jean prefers to entertain country casual by having
friends out to her farm. “There is great pleasure in seeing all of them sitting
around my dining room table, laughing and having a great time,” she says. “We
love to end the night sitting around our fire circle and looking at the stars!”
Jean first learned of LDEI because of her fascination with Julia Child.
“But I also had some wonderful friends who were members and generously invited me
to join. I have been a member for one year now.”
What does she enjoy most about being a member? “I love the networking
and camaraderie of our chapter,” she enthuses. “All of our members are simply
outstanding women with a shared passion and purpose. I am honored to be a
part!”
Learn more about Jean as she shares some fun and interesting insights
about herself.
What is the most
unusual thing you’ve ever eaten? I love sweetbreads! But the most unusual
“thing” that I have eaten is the crystal line of a conch. It is said to have
magical properties!
Which one chef
would you want to invite over for dinner and what would you serve? Oh, wow!
This is a difficult question… there are so many amazing chefs. But I would really
love to cook for Joanne Weir. I love her style, and I think we would have a
great time. I would purchase as many products as possible from local
farmers. I would invite each producer to
come for dinner to tell us about their product and to also enjoy the festive
evening. Our salad would be local greens with either a roasted fruit or
vegetable topped with fresh chèvre, of course! Our entrée would be pork from New Creation Farm, located just up
the road from our farm. My mother’s scalloped potatoes and local seasonal
vegetables would accompany the entrée. Dessert would have to be a chocolate something!
And our wines would run the gamut from rosé to white to port.
What is your
favorite cookbook? My favorite cookbook is more of a cook magazine with no
ads: Cook’s Illustrated.
Describe your
perfect meal. Ahh… the perfect meal. Let’s start with something small but
big in flavor, a serving of smoked trout paté on quinoa crackers followed by a
fresh melon and mint salad. Individual
Cornish game hens on a bed of wild rice served with asparagus topped with lemon
sauce. Dessert would have to be a chocolate lava cake!
What’s your
favorite comfort food? Uncle John’s Meatloaf! Uncle John has THE most
amazing meatloaf recipe that is the best I have ever had, bar none.
What’s your
favorite snack? Pretzels dipped in almond butter.
Do you have a
signature dish? I rarely cook the same thing twice, but I would have to say
my signature dish would be my wild mushroom lasagna.
What’s your
go-to, quick-and-easy dinner? Chicken piccata.
What’s the biggest
cooking mistake you’ve ever made? When I was a new bride, I was making a
dish that called for “soda.” The author assumed that everyone understood “soda”
meant baking soda. I added club soda!
Name 3 kitchen
gadgets you can’t live without. My LamsonSharp
knives, Cuisinart, and hot pads!
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