THE DARING COOKS’ APRIL, 2011 CHALLENGE: EDIBLE CONTAINERS (SAVORY)

I am a Functional Nutrition and Lifestyle Practitioner, Nutritionist, Clinical Herbalist, Certified Nutrition Coach and a self proclaimed Culinary Archeologist. I studied Nutrition Science at Stanford University. Growing up, my friends always said our kitchen smelled like syrup. I of course interpreted this as a good thing, and it was. I enjoyed the smell of my Mom’s kitchen. To me it was a mixture of onions, garlic (two of my favorites) fenugreek, the sweetness of saffron and rosewater. Exotic spices from Iran were always in the house. Strange looking vegetables or fruits like artichokes and pomegranates. I grew up with “Persian influence” my mother would say. My Grandmothers kitchen was different. It either smelled of her famous chocolate cherry cake, KFC, or canning tomatoes. All of which smelled good to me. If we were visiting on a day it smelled of chocolate cake you could guarantee a peek at Grandpa through the kitchen window sneaking a second serving of chocolate cherry cake as we pulled out of the driveway to head home. One of my fondest memories. Most of the memories I have growing up include food. Very good food. And I think food should do just that. Take you somewhere, remind you of something wonderful, transport you to another time when all you had to do was pick up the fork and enjoy it! Don’t get me wrong choosing the ingredients and preparing what is on that fork is fun too! (Ever go foraging for watercress in a mountain creek?) But for those who are eating it, no other thoughts should be in their mind, other than the places that fork is about to take them. Here at Culinary Archeology I emphasize healthful eating personalized to YOUR genetics, design, lifestyle, environment, and health concerns. I help you build the confidence and skills to eat, cook and bake nutritiously intuitive, with purpose and creativity. My meal plans offer effective strategies and tools to improve health, including weekly food and shopping schedules, healthful recipes, and recommendations about cooking and food storage methods, as well as steps to achieve mindful eating, making food choices easier and fun, every day. I became a Certified 3x4 Practitioner because I know that there is no single right diet that applies to all of us. We have different genetic backgrounds, different preferences, and different lives. And until you get your nutrition right, nothing is going to change. By changing your diet , you can change your entire physiology. I am here to teach strategies and give tools to find out what is right for each person, individually.