What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it?
I've always found cooking to be an incredibly creative, therapeutic process. The act of planning a menu, choosing and gathering the best ingredients, the meditative chopping and dicing, and the way you can create something completely new each time...it's a deeply satisfying, full-sensory experience that nourishes my spirit and feeds my soul. As part of my quest to live healthily and with intention, I try to cook a homemade meal almost every day, and the last thing I made was last night's dinner. Inspired by Jamie Oliver's recipe for Spaghetti con Gamberetti e Rucola (Spaghetti with Prawns and Arugula, pictured above), my husband and I created our own healthy version using brown rice penne in place of regular spaghetti. (We also omitted the shrimp in favor of extra arugula.)
Jason puréed about 10 sun-dried tomatoes with olive oil in our food processor, while I cooked 1 lb. of brown rice penné. We heated more olive oil (Jamie calls for "three good glugs") in a medium-sized pan, and tossed in 2 finely chopped garlic cloves and 1 tbsp. red chili pepper flakes. As the garlic began to brown, we added the sun-dried tomato purée to the mix, along with about a half cup of white wine. The mixture was naturally salty from the sun-dried tomatoes, so to season, I simply added a little bit of freshly ground black pepper. When the penné was ready, we drained it in a colander, and tossed it with the sauce, along with the juice of one lemon, and 4 cups of organic baby arugula. (It will seem like a lot of arugula at first, but it wilts down quite a bit.) We ate the pasta with a little bit of lemon zest grated on top, along with plenty of fresh chopped basil (Jamie's recipe doesn't call for the basil, but I find it to be a refreshingly sweet counterpoint to the savory flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes.)
Interestingly, the cooking theme carries over into the second part of the question: something I want to make, but need to clear some time for. I know for certain that I want to launch a holistic health coaching business and my studies at IIN will provide me with a foundation for doing so, however, I also know I need to create a specific vision for my business, along with actionable steps for achieving my goals. It's an ongoing process, and not necessarily something I can just sit down and do in a single afternoon, but I have had a big revelation: I've realized that I want to incorporate a healthy cooking aspect into my health coaching practice. Cooking is so much a part of who I am that I almost take it for granted, forgetting that there are so many people hungry (literally!) for knowledge about preparing healthy, delicious food. So, my vision for myself as a health coach is evolving to emphasize this culinary aspect, but I still need to cultivate a specific plan and brand identity for the business itself.
One day at a time, right?
This post is part of Reverb10. Learn more here.
Image via Jamie Oliver.
5 comments:
It must be fate that's bringing me to posts like this. I click on random tweets in the reverb stream, and find other people for whom making food is important.
I think a cooking component to your coaching practice sounds great! When doing some research a while back on IIN and local natural health coaches, I came across Amanda Skrip (an IIN grad) out of Chicago who does cooking classes, nutritional coaching, and works as a private chef (I don't know her personally at all though). Maybe check her out if you're curious about that kind of business model?
I've also taken cooking classes from Dawn Jackson Blatner, who is a traditional registered dietitian, but emphasizes whole, plant-based foods. Her classes are fantastic! She also consults and writes for publications. She might also be one worth researching.
I hope you don't mind me offering up their names! I just thought of both of them when you mentioned cooking and coaching, so I thought I'd let you know about them :)
It's funny because when I read this prompt my mind immediately when to crafting rather than cooking. But I think I make much more time for cooking than other things because we have to eat!
i think i gained 10 pounds just from the picture! my mother finds cooking therapeutic and enjoyable. it skipped a generation.
i have a stomach bug and that pasta still looks good!
i am in that same place with my vision/business plan. i know what i want to do, but it seems like a lot and i am having trouble mapping it out. i watched a show on the cooking channel the other night that has inspired me to start planning a dinner/ cooking lesson for a few people- just to see how it goes. the show btw was The Four Coursemen, it was amazing :) check it out if you get a chance.
good luck- and i am here if you want to bounce some ideas around :)
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