Suzanne Dunaway

Chef, Entrepreneur, Artist, Cookbook Author

In the home where Suzanne Dunaway grew up, the kitchen was filled with the wonderful smells of bread baking and fabulous meals simmering. With her mother, a talented home chef, as her guide, as a teenage Suzanne taught herself many of the recipes from the first two volumes of Gourmet Magazine, and then went on to hold weekend dinner parties for friends at college. This early training would prove to be the perfect stepping stone to her future culinary career.

At the age of 18, Suzanne’s parents sent her to Europe, and it was at that time that her connection to the continental way of life began. Back in the states she studied Italian and art at Berkeley, which led to a return trip to Europe and ultimately to Rome. Although she fell in love with the eternal city and its people, she returned to California to continue developing her cooking and painting skills.

With her culinary career yet to emerge, Suzanne Dunaways’s first professional work was as an illustrator for The New Yorker, with her drawing for the Southern California restaurant reviews. She also became a contributor to Bon Appetit, the L.A. Times, and Wine Spectator, as well as producing original art for other commercial companies. During this time, Suzanne met and married her husband, who also shared her love of all things Italian and who had children living in Rome. Over the course of the next 30 years, they’ve spent part of the year in their beloved Rome, part of the year in her adopted California, as well as time in her native Texas.

The inspiration of these places, and her long time culinary curiosity, led to the creation of Buona Forchetta Hand Made Breads. With her husband as her partner, Suzanne was founder, owner, and head baker, and Buona Forchetta was honored as one of the seven best bakeries in the world by W Magazine. After eleven years, they sold the company and took advantage of the opportunity to spend more time in Rome.

The book that resulted from the success of their artisan bread company, No Need to Knead: Handmade Italian Breads in 90 minutes, was nominated for a prestigious James Beard award. Her second book, Rome, At Home: The Spirit of La Cucina Romana in Your Own Kitchen, published in 2004, allowed her to more fully explore and share her passion for the simple Roman cuisine she’s come to love.

Suzanne Dunaway is a talented artist, successful entrepreneur, and a dedicated aficionado of all things Roman. Each visit to Rome has taught her more about how to enjoy life, and that simple is better. With excellent ingredients as the foundation, cooking with ease and simplicity will find you spending less time in the kitchen and more time at the table, to share your passions with family and friends.