Sebastopol’s Hip Chick Farms chef to cook at White House

The White House is about to get a taste of the culinary skill of the chef and co-founder of Sebastopol’s high-end frozen food maker, Hip Chick Farms.

The invitation to serve as guest chef for a staff luncheon Friday came to Hip Chick’s Jen Johnson after President Obama this spring tasted her cooking.

In April the president ate a dinner specially prepared for him by Johnson, featuring Kobe short ribs, potato purée, heirloom carrots and Dungeness crab citrus salad. For the meal, Obama dined privately while attending a fundraiser at the San Francisco home of Ann and Gordon Getty, for whom Johnson is personal chef.

Afterward, a White House official extended the invitation to Johnson to cook for the president and about 300 staff members in Washington. “He said his boss loved the food so much,” Johnson recalled.

Johnson this week is in the nation’s capital with partner Serafina Palandech and their daughter, Rubyrose. Accompanying them are a sous chef, pastry chef and assorted family members. The cooks will prepare food Thursday and serve it Friday. The Hip Chick family members will join the staff for lunch.

Asked if the president will partake in the meal, Johnson replied, “If he’s there and there isn’t some kind of emergency, absolutely.”

Friday’s menu will feature three entrées: chicken breast and onion with chermoula over couscous with Sultana raisins and pistachios; meatballs with currants and spices in tzatziki and dill rice; and salmon burger on a brioche bun with red pepper aioli and arugula.

The lunch also will include a “warm fall” tomato soup, a trio of Mediterranean salads and for dessert, an apple, pear and quince crostata served with huckleberry and salted caramel ice cream.

Johnson also plans to provide homemade chocolates and special treats for the diners to take away, as well as Hip Chick stickers.

The White House visit is the latest development for the owners of Hip Chick, whose products include frozen chicken wings, meatballs, fingers and nuggets. About half of its items carry organic certification.

The 4-year-old company is now in about 3,000 stores, mostly on the West Coast, and it recently received $2 million in another round of investment funding. Hip Chick is now seeking to expand into the Midwest and South, Johnson said.

And next month, Palandech and Johnson will be the featured speakers at the finale of The Press Democrat’s Sonoma County Women in Conversation series. They will appear Nov. 10 at the Burbank Center for the Arts.

For Johnson, the highlight of the Washington trip will be cooking for Obama and “serving him one of his last meals before he leaves office.”

“I’ve come just to love him,” she said.

You can reach Staff Writer Robert Digitale at 707-521-5285 or robert.digitale@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @rdigit