University Libraries Promotion and Tenure Recognition

Cooked: From the Streets to the Stove, from Cocaine to Foie Gras is the remarkable success story of Jeff Henderson, currently executive chef at Cafe Bellagio in Las Vegas and the first African American to be named chef de cuisine at Caesars Palace Hotel. This riveting memoir is the incredible story of his rollercoaster from high-stakes cocaine dealer to prison inmate to world-class chef. Through sheer determination and desire to “be somebody” once released from prison, Jeff made it his mission to become a chef.

This book has special meaning to me because while growing up in the small town of Yazoo City, Mississippi, the people of the community often said to the children “You are going to grow up and be somebody.” This testament has gotten me to where I am at today, and carries me on to other aspirations. So choosing this book was natural, as a testament to how when all odds seem against you with perseverance and opportunity, we all can “be somebody,”