Amidst the flurry of holiday preparations most people have wondered, even fleetingly, how the services of a private chef would simplify things. And most folks will never have that luxury, so in this issue, we bring you their expertise, as some of the East Coast’s top private chefs share their favourite holiday recipes. 

Chef Benjamin Kelly’s Halloumi & Fig Salad
Red Seal certified chef and cookbook author Benjamin Kelly started cooking at age 15 in a small Chinese restaurant, paving the path to a culinary career that took him from Montreal to the Yukon. “As a private chef, every day is completely different,” says Kelly. “The biggest advantages for me are that I get to make my own hours, I’m home a lot more than I would be working in a restaurant, I get to cook food that I really enjoy cooking, I make more money, and I get to meet lots of interesting people.” See the recipe. 

Chef Danielle Duguay’s Apple Spice Cinnamon Rolls
Chef Danielle Duguay is the owner of Anemone, a private dining space in downtown Halifax where getting up close and personal with the chef is part of the experience. “I’ve wanted to cook for a living for as long as I can remember,” says Duguay. “I attended George Brown College in the early 2000s for baking and spent the first part of my career as a baker.”

Duguay moved to Halifax in 2013 and working in kitchen management before returning to self-employment as a personal chef. The past eight years have seen Duguay’s business flourish, primarily through word of mouth and her Facebook and Instagram followers. See the recipe.

Chef Paul Routhier’s Parsnip and Mushroom Tarts
When Chef Paul Routhier isn’t cooking for This Hour Has 22 Minutes, he hosts private dinners through his company, Knife for Hire. A highly accomplished chef who has worked in some of the most prestigious Toronto restaurants like Canoe and The Town Grille, Routhier moved to Halifax where he worked at 5 Fisherman and Fid before striking out on his own. As a private chef, he gets to be more creative with more flexibility and a more personal experience. “I’ve been in business for nine years and love the flexibility of being able to set my own schedule and cook what I like to cook, and I love being able to interact directly with the customers,” says Routhier. See the recipe.

Chef Craig Flinn’s Lamb Shank Shepherd’s Pie with smoked gouda mash & minted garden peas
Acclaimed chef and cookbook author Craig Flinn decided to sell his restaurants and become a chef-for-hire, alongside consulting, culinary tourism, and media work through his business, Fork in the Road Productions. “I’ve been fortunate to have a family later in life and working 60-plus hours a week running four restaurants wouldn’t be possible for me anymore,” he says. 

Flinn believes the private dining experience has and will continue to increase in popularity. “In-home dining creates truly unique memories in a more intimate, comfortable setting,” says Flinn. See the recipe.