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Last year, we spotlighted some of our local celebrity chefs here on Fill Your Plate, revealing what they can’t live without in their kitchens.  As we continue in this series, we will be interviewing a range of people including locally or nationally known chefs, a local or national celebrity that is also a foodie, or just a local personality that loves local Arizona grown food as much as we do. We have some great new additions to our list since last year, so we wanted to share what our newest celebrity chefs simply can’t live without.

Chef Charles Wiley

Charles Wiley, who has been cooking for more than 35 years, likes to focus on local, seasonal ingredients and traditional flavor combinations when creating his delicious and intensely flavored dishes.  He is the executive chef at Hotel Valley Ho and the hotel’s signature restaurant ZuZu.  When cooking, Chef Wiley cannot live without salt, freshly ground black pepper, fruity olive oil, and citrus.

Here are some great recipes featuring Arizona ingredients and Chef Wiley’s “can’t do without” ingredients.

• Salt – Tri-Color Penne with Cherry Tomatoes and Cheese
• Ground Black Pepper –  Goat Feta with Black Pepper and Thyme
• Olive Oil – Avocado and Tomato Salad
• Citrus –Citrus Marinated Grilled Turkey

Read more about Charles Wiley on Fill Your Plate.

Chef Jeremy Pacheco

Chef Jeremy Pacheco has been part of the farm-to-table movement all his life.  His time working on the family farm in Marana and eating what was grown instilled an appreciation for using the freshest ingredients grown on local farms.  He is the Executive Chef at the Hermosa Inn in Paradise Valley where he uses food grown on his family farm to make delicious dishes for the hotel’s restaurant, LON’s.     His can’t live without ingredient is fennel, which he uses in almost everything.

Here is a great recipe featuring Chef Pacheco’s must have ingredient, fennel.

• Golden Beet Fennel Avocado Salad

Read more about Jeremy Pacheco on Fill Your Plate.

Lisa and Bruce Haffner

Lisa and Bruce Haffner are media celebrities who love cooking for their four kids and enjoying the many outdoor activities Arizona has to offer.  Bruce, the owner of Chopperguy, provides aviation video production services and chopper-based news coverage.  Lisa is the host of AZ Family’s “Your Life A to Z” which provides lifestyle and living information and advice on Channel 3.   Their “can’t live without ingredients” are garlic, fresh ground pepper, onions, honey, and butter.

Here are some great recipes featuring Lisa and Bruce’s locally grown must have ingredients.

• Garlic – Sweet Potato Zucchini Frittata
• Fresh Ground Pepper – Herb Crusted Sirloin Roast
• Onions –  Arizona Quiche
• Honey –  Brent’s Honey Bacon Green Bean Bundles
• Butter – Baked Ham and Egg Casserole

Read more Bruce and Lisa Haffner on Fill Your Plate.

Chef Romeo Taus

Chef Romeo Taus is the chef and owner of Euro Café in Gilbert.  His passion for food has given him great respect for the farmers and ranchers that produce the produce and meat he uses to turn raw ingredients into a wide range of divine dishes.  He strives to evoke an emotional response with his food. Romeo’s can’t live without ingredients are olive oil, garlic, onions, herbs, acids like lemon, and bacon.

Here are some great recipes featuring Arizona ingredients and Romeo’s must have ingredients.

• Olive Oil – Marinated Beef Tips
• Garlic –  Garlic Cheese Fingers
• Onion – Classic Minestrone Soup
• Herbs – Julie’s Oven Roasted Red Potatoes and Asparagus
• Lemon – Chicken Picatta
• Bacon – Wild Mushroom Compote

Read more about Romeo Taus on Fill Your Plate.

Related articles

• Celebrate National Dairy Month With Gourmet Milkshakes Created By Local Chefs (fillyourplate.org)
• Perfecting Your Pantry: 10 Things to Always Have on Hand (fillyourplate.org)
• What Ingredients the Celebrity Chefs of Fill Your Plate Can’t Live Without (fillyourplate.org)