Flag LIVE! October 16, 2025
Written by Gail G. Collins
A body craves wellbeing through wholesome food. It satisfies us, fuels us and carries us forward. It’s essential, but crafting a meal isn’t always easy. It’s appealing to grab take out, a grocery ready meal or a frozen cardboard casserole to make it through a busy day. Once in a while, that’s fine, but we suffer when it becomes a lifestyle.
Filling that gap is the mission of Elysse Voyer, chef owner of Just Delivered, offering “nourishing meals straight to your nest.”
Specializing in nurturing food delivery, the idea was born alongside her first child. Post-partum, Voyer recognized the importance of her nutrition, seeking knowledge in the book by Heng Ou, “The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother” which revives the tradition of caring for a mother after birth. Inspired, Voyer made every recipe, freezing meals ahead for a return to her job as a cook.
“My style is well rounded, from scratch, soups and broths remembered from my mother and grandmother, who is French Canadian,” she said. “It reminded me of who I am.”
After a graduate education in astronomy, and then, time in the tech world, Voyer turned to cooking. Since she was 14 years old, she had consistently worked as a barista or waited tables to fill the gaps, so the choice was natural. Focused in the kitchen now, Voyer attended San Francisco Cooking School.
“I fell in love with the six-month culinary program catering to career shifts,” she said. “Then, I immersed myself in the Bay Area cooking scene.”
There, she worked for Jesse Cool, visionary owner of Flea Street Café, learned about organic, farm-to-table cuisine and mentored under Michelin-trained Charlie Parker.
Read more: Meals that care: Chef Elysse Voyer brings wholesome, healing food to FlagstaffWhen fellow astronomer and husband Ryan Hamilton took a position at Lowell Observatory, they settled into Flagstaff. Voyer hired on to Shift Kitchen, where each week the menu shifted by design, creating a stimulating work environment and a good deal of savvy. After their son was born, Voyer recalled, “I wanted to own something—my parents were small business owners.”
She merged the idea of nurturing new mothers with a flexible skillset in a new venture, Just Delivered. Voyer wrote a business plan and made her first delivery in May 2021. Tapping her personal experience with a doula and the maternity community, who were supportive, they worked together to grow their individual businesses.
Voyer initially concentrated on postpartum clientele, featuring popular energy balls or lactation treats—truffles packed with dates and dried cherries, Chocolita cacao powder, chocolate chips, quinoa crisps and nut butter for dense calories in a quick bite—as well as bone broths and soups. Her autumn menu showcases pumpkin with applewood smoked pears, shallot, garlic, fried sage and toasted pepitas or consider Arizona beans, ham and bitter greens.
Breakfast provisions range from green chili cheddar scones with bacon ghee to creamy cranberry vanilla almond breakfast rice congee to an egg, bacon, potato, red onion and blue cheese frittata.
There are pastas, such as pumpkin ricotta gnocchi with sage hazelnut honey pesto; herb-baked sockeye salmon over sweet potato orzo with rustic nut and raisin Foriana sauce and more. Savory options include Memere’s French Canadian pork stuffing with cranberry compote and roasted seasonal veg; stewed chicken with Flagstaff squash and green peppers over cheddar grits; or lamb and eggplant moussaka with house beef stock and parmesan Mornay sauce to name three.
Desserts delight with choices of rose cardamom quince and apple crisp, sweet squash and pecan cheesecake cups with buckwheat ginger crumb or Early Grey vanilla bean ice cream.
Voyer supports Arizona farms and ranches with an emphasis on responsibly-sourced ingredients and stressed, “accessible flavors to consume and feel nourished. Real food, fresh, prepared in-house.”
Specifically, she noted building blood pulls from dark, leafy greens, but of course, these are good for everyone to eat every day. Accommodation can be made for allergies, gluten- and dairy-free, vegetarian and vegan diets.
Inevitably, Just Delivered expanded its clientele to those, who are healing or recovering, as well anyone with a busy life. Whether it’s a short term or weekly arrangement, an array of food packages in seasonal offerings helps people eat locally and sustainably. In fact, food is delivered in mason jars, silicone bags and containers, which need only be rinsed and cleaned for return pick-up geared to the next delivery. And delivery within 15 miles of downtown Flagstaff is free. Order by Monday for Saturday drop-off.
The advantage to the client is, said Voyer, “Locally produced, chef-driven, high quality food delivered to your door weekly with the ability to stock wholesome food.” Gift boxes are available and a new prenatal box to serve Mom and Dad from early labor through delivery is coming soon. FLGLive!