Cricket is a dynamic professional chef who specializes in cooking for and with children. Her children’s cookbook, Everybody Eats Lunch, was published in May, 2008.  She is the Big Cheese of The Creative Kitchen - a company that teaches children and families through food and cooking, founded in 2001. In addition to classes and events, The Creative Kitchen also produces the Kids Food Festival, a series of food events, programmed with the assistance of the James Beard Foundation, that educates families on how to make balanced food choices. Cricket also developed Everybody Can Cook, a curricula for the special needs community, featuring adaptations for various physical and developmental abilities. She works with a variety of food companies, offering services including spokesperson, recipe development and testing, freelance writing, teaching, family outreach, blogging, creating webisodes, special events, and consulting. Cricket has a professional culinary degree from The Institute of Culinary Education, and developed her teaching philosophy while pursuing her Master's degree in Food Studies and Food Management at New York University (NYU).

Favorite veggie: Brussels sprouts
Favorite fruit: pineapple

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Katie comes to The Creative Kitchen team with a background in educating children, as well as a love of great food. Katie graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2011. She has used the skills and knowledge gained from her degree to tutor young children, teach essential skills to elementary school students, and assist and empower abused youth. In addition to her enthusiasm for education, over the recent years Katie has developed a passion for food and nutrition. Working at The Creative Kitchen combines her seemingly separate interests in extremely exciting and inspiring ways, and as such, she is ecstatic to have the opportunity to be a part of such an incredible team.

Favorite veggie: Brussels sprouts
Favorite fruit: blueberries

Angela is a food lover and an avid home cook with a knack for working with kids. She previously worked as a teaching assistant for children's educational cooking classes and as a childcare provider. Her passions for food, nutrition, and children brought her to The Creative Kitchen after she expanded her culinary repertoire and appetite in the editorial food department at Martha Stewart Living. Angela is an aspiring Registered Dietitian currently pursuing a dual Bachelor and Master of Science degree in nutrition with a minor in psychology at the CUNY School of Public Health at Hunter College.

Favorite veggie: arugula
Favorite fruit: avocado

Ghazalle  is a Persian-born, California-raised, Brooklyn-dwelling, editorial and commercial photographer. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Illustration Photography from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University and has been working in the commercial photography industry in NYC for the past 10 years. She has photographed projects ranging from family oriented cookbooks to globally distributed product packaging. Ghazalle brings her broad experience in food, still life and lifestyle photography to the Kids Food Festival. She manages a team of photographers documenting all the festival’s events and provides all images for press and publications.

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Kelly is a self-professed foodie and master (in her own mind) baker with a specialty of chocolate chip banana bread. She also has a Masters in Media Studies from the New School in NYC and a long history of marketing, sales and sponsorship consulting with family friendly focused companies. Most prominently, she is the Director of Everything partner related at Baby Loves Disco – the Original Family Dance Party that is in residence all over the country. Kelly has jumped into the Kids Food Fest assisting with the Main Stage Entertainment, and generally lending a hand with any other marketing duties that need help.

More info can be found at Baby Loves Disco