The Professional Chef’s Farm Share

Jamaica Plain specializes in fresh local food. With so many organic, local options to choose from, it’s hard for a business to stand out.

Enter Jen Rogers, a longtime chef, culinary industry professional and Jamaica Plain resident. Her company PerfectBite has partnered with Stillman’s Farms of Lunenberg to bring the farm, and her skills, to your front door.

Here’s how it works: Stillman’s provides Rogers with the ingredients, Rogers then publishes menus for clients, clients choose what they want and Rogers prepares 10 or 20 meal packages per week depending on share size. The meals are then delivered to clients’ homes or offices Monday by bicycle via Boston Collective Delivery.

Rogers, who has 20 years experience as a chef, personally prepares all of the meals.

It sounds intensely laborious, but with a commercial kitchen space on the Jamaica Plain/Roslindale line, Rogers says she’s up to the task.

“It’s going to be very exhausting,” she says, “but it’s all about planning.”

She’s only accepting clients on a quarterly basis to start. A Stillman’s PerfectBite full share is $335 per week and suitable for four people, totaling $4,020 for 12 weeks. For that package a client will get 20 meals per week. A small share is $225 per week and suitable for two people, totaling $2,700 for 12 weeks. For this package, the client will get 10 meals per week. Delivery, on bicycle by way of Boston Collective Delivery, is an additional $18 per week.

Rogers, 43, says it’s actually easier to churn out meals in bulk as opposed to cooking for individual families.

“You can bust it all out in one day by upping the quantities,” she says.

Because the meals will all be cooked and delivered fresh, she will include a disclaimer informing clients that meals are best consumed within three to four days of delivery and that everything not eaten should be frozen.

The meals include fruit, vegetables, poultry, meat, eggs, dry goods and anything else required to complete them. Here’s a sample menu, courtesy of Rogers’ personal blog:

Sesame Noodles with Summer Vegetables and Steamed Edamame(perfect chilled dish for summer)

Black Bean and corn Stew 

Grilled Chimichurri Chicken with Green Beans and Tossed Salad

Spaghetti & Meatballs with Sauteed Spinach

Turkey Kielbasa with Black-eyed Peas and Kale

Rogers, who is also a Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council member, wants to empower the client. She says most CSAs involve the element of surprise – clients getting a batch of Kohlrabi, but having no idea how to cook it, for example. Through her system, it's as good as having an in-home professional chef.

“I’m trying to bring a heightened awareness to all these great ingredients that can be transformed,” she says. “You can feed your family well, and you don’t have to cook it.”