Bonnie Stern

From her early beginnings as a chef to opening her renowned cooking school, Bonnie Stern has become a Canadian culinary guru.

Bonnie Stern, who for decades operated her eponymous cooking school in Toronto, is a self-proclaimed "social worker in the kitchen", helping others cook easy, delicious and nutritious meals for themselves and their families.

When she first opened her school, Stern faced some adversity as chefs were not regarded with high esteem. Nonetheless, Stern proved sceptics wrong, channelling her educational background to develop her career. Her degree in English from the University of Toronto gave her the confidence to establish herself as a cook, a journalist, an author and a business woman.

"Going to the University of Toronto gave me a lot of confidence and knowledge and gave me the confidence needed to do what I do now."

Aside from being a fabulous cook and teacher, Bonnie Stern is also the author of various best-selling and award-winning cookbooks such as the HeartSmart series written in conjunction with The Heart And Stroke Foundation of Canada, Bonnie Stern's Essentials of Home Cooking and Friday Night Dinners.

Not only are her books award-winning, Stern herself is the recipient of many awards from the Toronto Culinary Guild, Cuisine Canada and she is also the 2007 recipient of the Premier's Award.

Stern's talents exceed the kitchen as she now hosts private cooking events and corporate classes, leads culinary trips and sends out a monthly newsletter with recipes, restaurant recommendations and information about her monthly book club. At her book club, Bonnie brings readers and writers together over dinners that are related to the theme of the book, combining both her passion for literature and her love of cooking.

With titles under her belt such as cook, teacher, writer, author and business woman, Bonnie Stern has gone above and beyond to redefine what it means to be a chef.

Published Nov. 28, 2013