Hi, I'm Lori. I'm the owner and operator of Great Capers Cooking, LLC. I started Great Capers in 2002, with the business name Personal Chef, LLC.

People often ask me where I received my culinary training. I do give a serious answer (see next paragraph), but I have to say I am always amused. I worked for over 15 years as a technical writer/web programmer and probably not even a handful of people ever asked me where I received my schooling. Oh, I understand. Food is a lot more personal than a software manual you're never going to read! ;)

Anyway, I have taken culinary courses at Schenectady County Community College in New York. I am a member of the United States Personal Chef Association (USPCA) and have earned a United States Personal Chef Institute Personal Chef Certificate.

I also worked part time in the vegetarian deli of Honest Weight Food Co-op in Albany, NY, for four years. (No, I am not a vegetarian, and yes, I do prepare meat.)

I do also happen to have bachelor's and master's degrees in technical communication. (One degree just wasn't enough!) I worked in software documentation my entire writing career and ended up doing web work and a little bit of programming. A life-altering event at an unexpected time really drained me physically and emotionally, and I was unable to put any effort into things that lacked meaning for me, including my work that year. With the support of coworkers at my job, I started a personal chef business.

My goal as a cook is to tackle an issue that is as difficult for me as it is for many other people -- to eat unprocessed whole foods when you don't have the time to plan, shop, and prepare those foods. We are fortunate in the Albany, NY, area to have access to many locally grown foods, and access to a variety of food ingredients from different cultures as well as major brands of whole and organic foods.

I am fortunate to have some long-term customers who I have been cooking for monthly for over five years now. These folks really keep me going!

Thank you!

Lori