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Here is a sneak peak at the package the Golden Globe attendees will be receiving…

More information to follow.

Omanhene Chocolate at the Golden Globes is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

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Steve Wallace and Greg Jennings

Now the two are joining forces to provide study abroad scholarships to underserved youth through AFS, a nonprofit leader in international high school student exchange.

“I am very proud that the Greg Jennings Foundation will work with Omanhene, a Midwest-based company that produces cocoa and chocolate entirely on the African continent and does such good work around the world,” Jennings said. Our Foundation is about empowering young people to BE GREAT in whatever they choose, and this scholarship program will award scholarships to outstanding young people and change their lives in the way that no other experience can.”

Greg Jennings holding tin of Omanhene Hot Cocoa Mix

The Jennings/Omanhene Faces of America scholarship program is made possible with local support from the AFS Foundation of Greater Milwaukee and Lake Valley Camp, a nonprofit organization that serves youth living in Milwaukee’s most underserved communities. Jennings and Wallace will raise scholarship funds through a variety of activities including a percentage of sales through Omanhene’s website.

AFS USA Faces of America provides high achieving students from low-income families a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study abroad. By partnering with community-based organizations and individuals, FoA has already awarded study abroad scholarships to more than 780 outstanding teenage scholars. For more information on the FoA program, go to www.afsusa.org/faces-of-america.

About The Greg Jennings Foundation

The Greg Jennings Foundation

The Greg Jennings Foundation strives to partner with and assist other organizations in educating youth by providing the necessary resources in order for them to reach their academic potential.For more information visit http://www.gj85foundation.com/

About The Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

The Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company. www.omanhene.com

Omanhene pioneered the marketing of single-bean, bean-to-bar chocolate and cocoa products manufactured entirely on the African continent; Omanhene produces its products in Ghana, West Africa, the world’s premier cocoa-growing country.  Steven Wallace, himself a high school foreign exchange student, studied in Ghana on an AFS scholarship in 1978 and founded Omanhene in 1991.  Wallace is featured in Georgia Pellegrini’s book “Food Heroes” and in Orla Ryan’s book “Chocolate Nations”.  Wallace speaks before many student groups from kindergarteners to MBAs and is passionate about extending international educational opportunities to young Americans believing it teaches skills integral to 21st century success. For more information: www.omanhene.com.

About AFS USA

AFS International Student Exchange Program

AFS USA, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is a leader in intercultural learning offering international exchange programs in more than 40 countries around the world, AFS has a 65 year history of exchanging students throughout the world with an exemplary record of safety, security, and service to students, parents, and educators (www.afsusa.org).

About Lake Valley Camp

Lake Valley Camp

Lake Valley Camp’s mission is to develop the abilities of high school students and young adults from Milwaukee’s underserved neighborhoods to teach, lead and inspire children from the same neighborhoods.  Participants enter the program at age seven and continue through high-school and beyond when they are employed by the organization.  Participants develop life skills and social and emotional intelligence at each stage of their journey.  Older participants benefit from leadership and college preparatory programs as well as hands-on teaching experiences within the organization.  Lake Valley Camp is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization.  For more information: (www.lakevalleycamp.org).

Welcome Greg Jennings! Announcing the Jennings/Omanhene Scholarships is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

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In another life, I might have been a teacher — I’ve always loved learning and to this day can list every teacher I’ve ever had.  We discussed the history of Ghana, learned a word or three of the Twi language and of course, learned how to taste chocolate like a connoisseur.  One of the highlights of the visit was running a simulation I’ve created that replicates the negotiating postures of Ghanaian cocoa farmers on the one hand and a multinational cocoa processing company, on the other.  We divided the class into two sections, briefed each side on their particular goals and let them try to conclude a successful supply agreement.  The purpose of the exercise is to introduce the concept of the economic value chain and how emerging economies might create wealth.  The students did a terrific job — I always learn something with each school visit.

St. Charles Catholic School Class Visit: September 15, 2011. is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

Safari Cup: A New Face of Africa in Chicago

Running Omanhene has many rewards — the best of which are the people I get to meet. Let me introduce you to Dave and Sharon McLaughlin. They founded Safari Cup in Birmingham, AL over a decade ago — a neighborhood cafe in this most Southern of cities — dedicated to bringing authentic African coffee to their customers. I’ve done business with Dave and Sharon for well over a decade. Call them up and you are greeted with a sublime Zimbabwean accent (though I suspect most people mistake them for South African or even Australian). They moved to the US as the Zimbabwean economy imploded and with single-minded focus built a life for themselves here, investing in their new country and learning a new business from the ground up. Safari Cup’s success is an inspiration to me. Not only are Dave and Sharon fluent in the language of commerce, they also speak with the soul of artists. To see what I mean, I encourage you to visit their website and read their eloquent goodbye letter to the city of Birmingham written on the occasion of their leaving that city to move north to Chicago a few years ago. I’m proud they showcase Omanhene chocolate and hot cocoa mix.

Dave and Sharon McLaughlin, serving warm hospitality and great coffee in the city of broad shoulders

Safari Cup: A New Face of Africa in Chicago is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

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Omanhene “Cleopatra” Hot Chocolate is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company

I left home in 1981 at the age of 22 and moved to New York to study literature at Manhattan’s Borough College with the goal of becoming a simultaneous translator at the United Nations. I could not have imagined that 10 years later I would be named Executive Chef at Spago — what was then, arguably, the trendiest, most famous restaurant in the US — working for Wolfgang Puck. But I am getting ahead of myself . . .

Living in New York fresh off the airplane from Côte d’Ivoire was a wonderful, intoxicating adventure for me — and an expensive one. I needed a job to make some money and found work cleaning New York City restaurants after closing; I’d come in at 3:00 am after a day of classes and studying to begin work mopping floors, emptying ashtrays, and wiping down tables and chairs. I jumped at the chance to work as a part-time prep cook at Alo Alo restaurant quickly moving up the culinary ladder to become a line cook under the tutelage of Chef Francesco Antonucci. In 1994, Chef Francesco asked me to join him at his new restaurant, Remi and I became highly trained in the art of pasta making, preparation of a superb risotto, gnocchi and raviolis.

It was at Remi where I first met Wolfgang Puck, the meticulous Austrian who would transform American cooking and become a celebrity in his own right — making cuisine approachable, fun and inventive and giving rise to a new generation of chefs. I was responsible for all of Puck’s prep work for his “Good Morning America” appearances. In 1989, I moved to Los Angeles and began work as a line cook for Puck. I worked at several of Puck’s restaurants including Chinois on Main and Postrio in San Francisco,  watching, tasting and above all learning. Within five months, I was named Sous Chef to Executive Chef Makoto Tanaka at Spago West Hollywood. There I paired my pasta-making technique with Puck’s one-of-a-kind sauces to create renowned dishes such as Seafood Risotto with Tarragon and Crisp Ginger, Sautéed Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Grilled Baby Chicken and Sage Parmesan Butter.

When Chef Makoto moved to Chinois on Main in 1991, I became the Executive Chef at Spago and remained in that position for nearly six years. During this time, I traveled to Japan with Chef Makoto to learn about Japanese cuisine and technique and trained with some of the finest French chefs including Chef Marc Meneau at L’Esperance in Saint-Pere-sous-Vezelay, Chef Bernard Loiseau at La Côte d’Or in Saulieu and at L’Oustau de Baumaniere in Les Baux-de-Provence and Troisgros in Roanne.

As Executive Chef of Spago, I was voted on the best upcoming young chefs in Los Angeles in 1992. Food critic Ruth Reichl of the Los Angeles Times, wrote,

“the early menu of Spago listed just four pastas: one ravioli, one angel hair and two that were simply called pasta. Today with François, we know exactly what sort of pasta we are going to ingest. Linguine, gnocchi, agnolotti, risotto, which was virtually unknown on menus in 1982, is now a fixture of California Cuisine.”

Not only was I learning to assemble flavors and to master various techniques — in short, to cook — I learned how to manage all aspects of a restaurant from finances to accommodating the requirements of celebrity patrons. In 1996, Wolfgang Puck chose me to open Spago Chicago, Puck’s first foray outside of California.

We were overwhelmed by the response. Legions of foodies lined up day and night to sample the new trend-setting eatery. We received overwhelming reviews in the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Magazine. As Executive Chef and Partner, I oversaw the development of Wolfgang Puck Catering and Events, Puck’s Restaurant at the Museum of Contemporary Art and Wolfgang Puck Catering at The University of Chicago Gleacher Center, Goldman Sachs, Citadel Investments and many of Chicago’s premier event destinationsand cultural and commercial institutions.

In addition  to frequent appearances on television and radio, I have been featured in various print media including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Magazine, Nations’ Restaurant News and Wine Spectator. I was the subject of a 2002 profile in Gourmet Magazine.

I contribute time and talent to working with youth and such charitable organizations as Meals on Wheels, The Ronald McDonald Foundation, Chicago Film Institute, The Rita Hayworth Alzheimer’s Association and The Milwaukee Ballet.

Chef Francois's father (left) and grandfather (right), a Baoulé chief born in 1889, in the old Ivory Coast, circa 1945

Francois's Family, circa 1957, Francois's grandfather (left center) and grandmother Mocambo (right center with child on lap). It was Mocambo who recognized the future would demand that the children get a first-rate education. She persuaded Francois's grandfather to send all the children and grandchildren to school. Côte d'Ivoire, Circa 1957.

Bonjour, Mes Amis! Welcome to My Kitchen! is a post from Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company