Rogue Chef. Thomas Jefferson's Creme Brulee: How a Founding Father and His Slave James Hemings Introduced French Cuisine to America: Amazon.es: Craughwell, Thomas J., … Cooking has been a part of my life since I could sit in my highchair and help my Grandpa stir.

Thomas Jefferson owned Hemings, who was black, and the Hemings family’s oral history had long held that the third president was their ancestor, biological father to Sally Hemings’s children. James Hemings was one of twelve children of Elizabeth (Betty) Hemings (Gordon-Reed, 2008).

Visitors have long come to Monticello to see and admire Thomas Jefferson's mansion, but a new silhouette and exhibition bring a largely hidden life into the open. James’ mother was said to be the daughter of a “full-blooded African” and a white sea captain who is only known as Captain Hemings, and in being a slave, she was the “property” of John Wayles, “a Welchman” (Hemings,1873). Thomas Jefferson's Creme Brulee: How a Founding Father and His Slave James Hemings Introduced French Cuisine to America eBook: Craughwell, Thomas J.: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store

The Hemingses of Monticello, by Annette Gordon-Reed , poses and answers a question which should have been asked long ago; what if the Thomas Jefferson/Sally Hemings controversy isnt really about Jefferson at all? What if instead we put the surprisingly well-documented story of the Hemings family front and center? 89 likes.