Jenny Dorsey

Chef Jenny Dorsey’s name may belie her Chinese heritage. But her Spoonful does not. It celebrates the identity she continually explores and evolves. "I used to avoid using anything Asian because I didn’t want to be grouped into everyone who was Asian," she explains of why she did not always covet the flat-bottomed Chinese spoon at center. "But I hated those pesky European/American spoons—how do people drink soup from those little metal things?!" As pride in her heritage evolved, Asian-style noodle soups grew to make up an estimated 75% of her diet. The spoon became invaluable.

Dorsey makes the homemade wonton nestled at center with the same technique as her mother and grandmother. In and around it, old-world spices and matcha powder sit against a flare of new-world fluid gel. "A chef can be multidimensional with many aspects of who they were, who they are, and who they want to become," Dorsey says. "The ingredients I used tell that story. They’re the building block of who I am."