Carissa Jones

Carissa Jones, Dessert Chef
Les Dames Escoffier

Born and raised in Sacramento, Chef Carissa has a love for the bounty the region has to offer and a passion for teaching the next generation of cooks to love the industry as much as she does. Her path to being a chef, and then a teacher, was circuitous. When she was 17 her family moved to Oregon where she graduated and proceeded to college at the University of Oregon.

After college she worked in the investment industry before enrolling at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco where she earned a certificate in Baking and Pastry. The years following she worked for numerous restaurants and in 2007 she opened a bakery in Sacramento specializing in special occasion desserts and cakes. In 2010 she became a pastry instructor at Le Cordon Bleu.

After Le Cordon Bleu closed in 2013 Chef Carissa returned to the industry as a pastry chef and kitchen manager. In 2018 she returned to education and created a culinary class inside of Sacramento County Juvenile Hall. She was named the Sacramento County Office of Education Teacher of the Year in 2020. Chef Carissa currently teaches Culinary Arts at Oakmont High School in Roseville, CA.