Jeff Whalen grew up in Katonah, NY but lived in Yorktown Heights, NY with his wife and children.
Jeff Whalen graduated high school in Cross River, NY. He eventually went on to Boston, MA to receive dual degrees in performance and music education from Berklee College of Music. Friends from high school and college affectionately called him “Al”. Jeff “Al” Whalen also earned a master’s degree in performance with a concentration in jazz at SUNY Purchase College in Purchase, NY.
Jeffrey had so many interests and hobbies. He often listened to National Public Radio and New York Public Radio.
Over the years, Jeff taught himself alot about carpentry and gardening:
Here he is building a raised garden bed:
One carpentry project was a tree house. Jeff admitted it took a long time to build because he was determined to build around the trees, not putting a single nail into the living structures…a tall order given the extensive root systems. Jeff Whalen created plans as he went, one step forward and two steps back! But the final result was complete with windows, benches and even an indoor table, as well as a side pulley delivery bucket system that his boys helped to build.
Jeff loved cooking and eating!
In the beginning, he developed his culinary skills with trial and error and Cooks Illustrated magazine:
Cook’s Illustrated | Recipes That Work | We Test It All
His most recent favorite magazine was:
One of his favorite cooking shows was:
Like a lot of people, Jeff made full use of the popular site:
Here are a few of his favorite Recipes. Hopefully they become favorites in your house as well:
Being outdoors was something that Whalen cherished. Some of his favorite activities were Soccer, Biking, Running, Swimming, and Traveling.
The Katonah Swim Team was something Jeff participated in while growing up. They celebrated their 50th reunion recently.
Here are some links to the Katonah Swim Team: