For Award-Winning Chef, Farm-to-Table Cooking Is Serious Business

Chef Alex Seidel, named by Food & Wine as one of the 10 best new chefs in the country in 2010, recently spoke to culinary students as part of JWU's Distinguished Visiting Chef series.

Chef Seidel is head chef at Fruition in Denver. He also owns a 10-acre farm in Larkspur where he grows vegetables for his restaurant and others, and raises chickens, goats and sheep. There he also crafts sheep’s milk cheeses from his flock, producing the first artisanal cheeses in Colorado. Chef Seidel, who has been nominated for several James Beard awards, gave a culinary demonstration to students on making ricotta cheese from sheep’s milk.

Seidel began his culinary career in Wisconsin at age 14. He trained in Colorado, as well as France, Italy and Morocco. Fruition has been featured in Gourmet and has been honored with the highest rating in the state by the Zagat Guide.