By Ashley McCleery

The North Jefferson News



Crouched in her mother’s garden in Evening Shade, Ark., young Kathleen Phillips surveyed the pea patch, grabbed several pods and snapped them open, revealing small green pea morsels. She then popped the peas in her mouth, relishing each bite.

“Nothing substitutes for fresh ingredients,” the now grown Phillips said. “My mom’s huge garden full of fresh vegetables and herbs inspired me.”

Although the garden fostered Phillips’ interest in food, her mother is the one who nourished her love of cooking. At age six, Phillips donned an apron to help her mother stir chocolate pudding, and she has yet to take it off.

Today, Phillips is a well-established chef. Not only does she run her own catering business in Gardendale, The Occasional Gourmet, but she also works as a test kitchen professional, recipe creator and freelance food stylist for the Oxmoor House of Southern Living. She’s also a new food columnist for Christian Woman magazine.

At the heart of these accomplishments lies a passion for cooking instilled by her mother. “All three of us [children] were encouraged to get in the kitchen and cook. Not just for fun but out of necessity,” she said. “But my love for cooking started with my mom helping me in the kitchen.”

For several years, her mother taught her the basics of cooking and baking for her 4-H assignments, creating a talent and passion that would soon be put to the test. When her mother returned to work, Phillips was put in charge of preparing the family meals, which gave the budding cook a chance to shine.

Equipped with a Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, Phillips started making dishes for her family and then altering the recipes when she ran out of certain ingredients. “I wore that book out. I had so many marks and changes in there,” she said.

Although she loved creating recipes, watching her family’s smiles while they ate her creations was the icing on the cake. “Seeing the reaction of my family when I would create something different — that’s where I give the credit for developing recipes and making them my own.”

This desire to create new recipes led Phillips to work at Southern Living Cooking School before graduating from University of Central Arkansas in 1987. Shortly after graduation, she moved to Birmingham to pursue a career at Southern Living, where she has worked the past 20 years.

Four years after she moved to Birmingham, she was able to share her passion for cooking with her new husband, Scott. When her daughter, Corinne, was born, followed by her son, Grayson, several years later, Phillips decided to work part-time.

But, this did not stop Phillips from venturing into the kitchen to create her own masterpieces. Nor did it stop Phillips from cooking meals for her husband’s business luncheons, which soon turned into her own catering company called The Occasional Gourmet. “Even though I wear a lot of hats, it keeps me flexible and involved in the community,” Phillips said. “It also keeps it interesting.”

Although Phillips keeps her hands busy dabbling in all areas of the culinary arts, she said she would always remember the root of her passion- family. “My children don’t always appreciate gourmet food,” she said. “But, they like to help. For example, every year we pick strawberries and blueberries to make jam and give that as Christmas gifts. Each child has a job to do.”

Phillips consistently incorporates her passion for cooking in her kids’ lives as a way to teach and bond. She even has a low sink, nicknamed the “kid’s sink,” in her kitchen so her son, who was diagnosed with spina bifida, can easily partake in cooking from his wheelchair.

Whether Phillips is cooking for her family, friends, her catering business or Southern Living, she said she strives to see one thing as they bite into her food. “I enjoy seeing the smiles of the people who eat the food,” Phillips said. “I like to please people when they eat the food I cook.”