Joanna Mary Seagar (born 1955), generally known as Jo Seagar, is a New Zealand writer, TV personality and celebrity cook. Seagar lives in the small town of

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

in North Canterbury, with her husband Ross. She initially trained as a nurse, and attended the Cordon Bleu cookery school in London while working at the Royal Free Hospital. Back in New Zealand, Seagar opened Harley's Restaurant in Auckland with fellow nurse Helen Brabazon. Seagar ran "Seagars at Oxford" cooking school, café and kitchenware store for about ten years, but it closed in 2015 after tourism decreased following the Canterbury earthquakes. Seagar was the first food writer for '' North & South'', has written for '' New Zealand Woman's Weekly'' and ''

Cuisine A cuisine is a style of cooking characterized by distinctive ingredients, techniques and dishes, and usually associated with a specific culture or geographic region. Regional food preparation techniques, customs, and ingredients combine to ...

'' magazine, and writes a regular column for the '' Australian Women's Weekly''. Seagar is patron and ambassador for Hospice, and raises money for the charity through cooking classes. In the

2015 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2015 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

, Seagar was appointed a

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to the community.

Books

* ''Jo Seagar's New Zealand Country Cookbook'' (1993) * ''Pearls from Jo Seagar's Kitchen'' (1999) * ''Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy'' (2001) * ''Sugar and Spice: A Taste of Chelsea'' (2002) * ''Lip Smackin' Fast Cookin' Hunger Bustin' Gr8 Tastin' Cookbook'' (2003) * ''Easy Peasy Very Cheesy'' (2004) * ''The Chelsea Cafe: The Simple, Tasty Cafe Food at Home'' (2005) * ''You Shouldn't Have Gone to So Much Trouble, Darling'' (2007) * ''All Things Nice'' (2002) * ''Jo Seagar Cooks'' (2006) * ''The Cook School Recipes'' (2008) * ''Everyday Cooking: Easy, Simple Recipes for Everyone'' (2010) * ''Italia: Simple Recipes from the Italian Cook School'' (2011) * ''Great Baking Recipes'' (2013) * ''A Bit of What You Fancy'' (2013) * ''Easy Finger Food Recipes'' (2014) * ''Jo Seagar Bakes'' (2014) * ''Elbows off the Table, Please'' (2016) * ''Better than a Bought One: Clever Recipes and Ideas for Home-Grown Celebrations'' (2018)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seagar, Jo 1955 births Living people People from Oxford, New Zealand Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand television personalities New Zealand television chefs New Zealand writers New Zealand women writers