Karen Gros

Imagine getting paid to indulge your passions. Karen Gros loves to cook, and she loves French culture. So once a month, she holds a cooking class in her kitchen, and this summer, she'll guide a group of travelers for a week in Paris. A separate group will spend 10 days with her in Provence. Travel is much less intimidating with a knowledgeable guide who speaks the language.

Karen has invited aspiring cooks into her home for four years. Some of the fare is authentic, some is "French-inspired," but everything that comes out of her kitchen reflects Karen's passion for food that nourishes body and soul.

"My philosophy is to inspire people to cook," she said. "Eating is our sustenance." Many of us scarcely notice what we eat, but Karen helps her students learn to revere the process of creating a meal that didn't come out of a package.

Admittedly, it helps to have the source of fresh herbs and vegetables grown by her husband Patrice. "He grows it, I cook it," Karen said. "We divide and conquer."

When Karen met Patrice in Los Angeles 17 years ago, she was working as an advertising media supervisor. Back then, Patrice wore a suit and was a stockbroker, but "he was not status-driven at all," Karen said, and that attracted her to him. They soon moved into a more rural part of California, where Patrice discovered his passion for gardening.

Once they realized they were headed "back to the land," the couple found their way to a hamlet near Provence, but when Karen conceived the first of their two children, they moved back to the United States.

Karen had grown up in Tulsa, and this area attracted them. They lived south of Berryville at first, before finding a spot just outside Eureka Springs to build their home and gardens.

Karen enjoys her "traditional" role in the household, a role in which "the pressure is not on me to make a living." She may use that freedom to write a book, or "we may even change roles," she suggested.

For now, she's very comfortable with Patrice occupying the role of the "primary breadwinner" in the family.

Karen learned a lot about cooking from Patrice's stepmother, and she also learned some personal qualities from her. "I like the way she handles Patrice's dad. She handles him gracefully, and always lets him feel he's making the decisions."

Karen confided that she admires the work ethic of Martha Stewart, although she understands why people criticize some of Stewart's excesses of personality. "She aims for perfection," Karen explained, before admitting that she shares some of Stewart's notorious traits.

"I'm very impatient and demanding," she said, and her kids nodded in agreement. She's been working on avoiding "the worst aspects of perfectionism," and "working to be more patient."

In addition to her monthly culinary classes, Karen is available as a personal chef. She'll prepare a complete and memorable meal right in your kitchen--just right for intimate, personal gatherings.