About Jess.

I was born and grew up in Kenya, East Africa on the outskirts of big bad Nairobi.. which to be fair, is not all that big and bad.
With a younger brother, a big garden and no shoes, my days were spent outside, playing sport and messing around in the garden with various toys like tadpoles and sticks… my childhood memories all merge together in one happy, exhausted and well-fed heap, thanks Mum!

After school I flew the nest and headed to the University of Cape Town in South Africa where for three years I studied environmental science before completing a fourth year Honors programme in Disaster Management. Throughout my university career I worked for a high-end catering company that first began my interest and then love of cooking, presenting and serving different people.

After University I wanted a change of scene and decided to make a break from my beloved Africa to see what the ‘real’ world was all about. Landing in Morzine, France for the first time in December I was bowled over by the snow, the amazing road conditions and how fat and healthy all the cows were. That first winter taught me a HUGE amount… surviving the cold, the french and fully appreciating the magnificence of the baguette.

Staying on for that summer in the alps was for me a dream come true, meadows, sunshine, mountain biking and just the freshness of the air, the food and the people. I love mountains!

2 years of cooking in a mountain bike chalet for hungry bikers taught me a lot and I quickly learned the art of catering for large numbers efficiently. Morzine, otherwise known as ‘man-zine’ in the summer due to the overbearing amounts of testosterone peddling around required me to adapt my daily menu to one that provided both quantity and quality.

That next winter I got a job as Sous-Chef at Chilli Powder Hotel, also in Morzine. This is a very up-market establishment that saw me working beneath the Head Chef – Matthew Willkinson. Matt, who has won several chef-type awards and has several years of experience. He taught me an enormous amount and coupled with cooking and serving at a separate ‘exclusive’ chalet meant I left that season with both invaluable experience and confidence.

The Country Pumpkins idea was born on a trip to Italy with my Mum and Dad. We spent 10 days floating around Tuscany in dads old Citroen DS. The weather was amazing, the countryside was explored, the food was fresh and juicy and i thought to myself ‘you know what, I love this’.
And there you have it.

Jess de Boer
Country Pumpkins’ chef and lifestyle coach