Detra “Denay” Davis, is a native Michigander, from the land of Farmers’ Markets, automobiles and apples… “nothing like those Michigan apples.” Her career journey has included working as a cook, food stylist, and caterer (featured in Bon Appetit magazine), culinary consultant, cooking instructor and all round food enthusiast for more than twenty five years. She worked in a major hotel, a swank urban restaurant, catered for the rich and not so famous, been the food stylist for a “love chef” and a few others promoting their books and products. The journey has not been easy, and she continues to work tirelessly to perfect her craft and spread the word about the importance of learning how to be a “good” cook and baker.

Denay is a graduate of the University of Maryland (UMUC) with a Masters in Distance Education. She designed the popular Wake County Public School System Lifelong Learning  (Raleigh, NC) course How to Operate a Home-Based Bakery: Profits from Your Kitchen, currently available  online and soon to be a book.

Today Denay teaches cooks and bakers nationwide how to a start a home based bakery and the “business-side” of catering. Denay insist, “there really is a Mrs. Fields, Famous Amos and  Paula Deen in all of us. ”

A member of Slow Food (Research Triangle Chapter), the International Association of Culinary Professionals, and the Southern Foodways Alliance.

Cooking with Denay’s Mission

Everything Denay does is inspired by her enduring mission:

• To be a positive influence in the lives of all who cross her path
• To inspire moments of optimism and faith
• To make her corner of the world a better place