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Chef Mia Wasilevich : Transitional Gastronomy

May 9, 2017

 

Recently, we had the pleasure to sit down for coffee at Broome Street General Store with creative author and wild plant sage and forager Mia Wasilevich. Multitalented and vastly cultured, Mia’s inherently grounded personality with plants was a breath of fresh air. We spoke about her luminous journey, new book and resonating tips for everyone to augment their relationship with plants. Be sure to check out her wild foraging and cooking classes at Transitional Gastronomy, and be sure to pre-order her new innovative book, Ugly Little Greens, being released on May 16. Read more about Mia’s story and her partner Pascal Baudar’s classes at Urban Outdoor Skills.

Your new book Ugly Little Greens comes out soon. Can you please tell our readers what this book is about?

Over the last seven years, while teaching and cooking for students and clients, I have incorporated foraged edible plants, mainly invasive “weeds” into my cuisine. These are plants that you overlook in your yard or on trails and that most people try to force out of their garden. There’s nothing particularly new about foraging or gathering wild edible plants, but each time I taught a class or did a special dinner with these plants, I found that people were amazed that you could create something beautiful, elevated yet simple and fun with them. I started getting so many requests for my recipes and I knew it was time to do a book. For the most part, these recipes are simple, don’t use too many ingredients or intricate cooking techniques, and cooks of any skill level can execute them easily. My hope is that they’ll provide inspiration for you to take the recipe, make it your own and take the dishes to a whole other level.

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What recipes are you most proud of from ULG?

I think the recipes I’m most proud of are the ones that are the simplest. I love tackling the ingredients that people would think are the most difficult to work with like dandelions, for example. They can be bitter and many people just end up chucking them into a smoothie. They are probably at the top of the “Ugly Little Greens” list but you can pair their bitterness and feature it in a way that’s harmonious. I love the Braised Dandelions with Figs and Wine. I also love the savory Lambsquarters Rice Pudding with its warm and comforting richness, the simplicity of the Abdoogh Khiar (kefir over ice) with Cattail and Rosehips, and the Nettle Canederli with Wild Mushrooms and Nettle Butter. 

What is the take away message you would want readers to receive from ULG?

That fancy and good are not necessarily the same thing. To taste the plant and let it tell you if it’s a gentle flavor that needs very little or a strong flavor that challenges you to play with it. Taste your food. Look at food in a new way and open the possibility of trying new things. I think many of us get into a rut of eating the same five vegetables over and over and we prepare or cook them the same five ways. That simplicity is beautiful. Honor your environment.

Where did your love for foraging begin? Were you trained as a chef or herbalist?

I am completely self-taught as far as cooking goes. I have always been interested in food as a creative medium and I grew up during the time that food TV and the idea of “the foodie” came into being. Although my career moved into entertainment/marketing, cooking for people was the thing I did during my off time and the thing I enjoyed the most. It’s the thing that made me happy. Once I surrendered to that idea (and it is like surrendering because I did have to give up a few luxuries and some of the security that a corporate job provides) it opened a whole world of opportunities and ways to create venues to do what I really wanted.

As far as foraging, I studied with various teachers in the Los Angeles area including my partner, Pascal Baudar. I really do think that with this kind of work, you need the one-on-one experience of being taught by an actual person to give you the confidence and solid background to know what you are doing. Getting to know the land this way is like an oral history that gets passed from person to person. Studying online and from books is an excellent supplement but you can’t replace that personal connection.

I honestly don’t consider foraging some separate thing or cool “new” thing to do. It’s just another way of sourcing food. It’s like an addition to a farmers market to me. And because I had traveled a lot as a kid, I was aware that other cultures utilize what grows around and with them and integrate these kinds of plants into their cuisine and culture. There’s less of a line between weeds and cultivated plants in other parts of the world.

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How did you and Pascal begin your journey together?

In true 21st century fashion, we met online. Neither one of us was particularly looking for a partner at the time, but we were both intrigued at this online dating phenomena. It was both of our first experiences with online dating and we didn’t know what we were doing. Actually, Pascal didn’t meet my online criteria but it somehow matched us up anyhow, hahaha. We both decided that we didn’t care for the online dating experience and decided to connect on the phone instead. We found some extraordinary similarities, passions and approaches to life. And most importantly, of course, what we had in common was the love of food. On one of our first dates he took me out on a forage and we instinctively just made a little feast from our harvest and the rest is history.

Why settle in such a dry chaparral climate/ecosystem like Los Angeles?

I think I tend to look at the question in reverse. I didn’t necessarily choose this location. It’s where I ended up after college and where I chose to begin my early career. This is a really important question as it lays the groundwork for my overall philosophy. When you forage, you need to adapt your expectations and skillset to your immediate environment and be adaptable, flexible, and aware. It’s not a supermarket out there or a farm where there’s a certainty of finding the type of foods you want in a specific location. Your awareness of the environment and how it shifts to accommodate the climate and weather patterns and the fact that seeds and plants move around all contribute to the need to think on your feet, be extremely observant of everything around you and to be a little intuitive. So, in a roundabout way, I have become a part of this ecosystem because I live here. I have and will continue to adapt to it and be grateful for everything it provides.

How have you remained honest and down to earth while living around the superficial or perfunctory Los Angeles scene? 

Everything is a matter of perspective. You may not be able to change certain situations or surroundings, but you always have the choice of changing your perspective. I’m not focused on the “LA scene,” per se, but I am a part of it because I’m here. I think my focusing on the kind of people I do want to meet, engage with and the projects I want to work on funnel that reciprocal energy back to me. I’ve met so many wonderful and lifelong collaborators here. It’s just incredible to me how many amazingly creative people are here and how many forward thinkers and innovators there are. And because I’ve decided to follow my bliss and do what I love full time, I’m meeting people who are doing the same. It’s wonderful. I feel like my past life was another world.

How do your recipes creatively manifest? How do you create such unique dishes? Does the plant speak to you?

Yes! Sometimes the plant does speak to me in a way. When the first little shoots arrive in the spring they give off such a light and happy little vibe that you can’t help but create something light and joyous. I also think that because I was not classically trained, I don’t have the same restraints when approaching a recipe. It’s one big happy experiment to me. And the recipes are directly inspired by the plants. I can remember at one time only having acorns and cactus to harvest and I was creating a small bespoke event. You really have to pull out all your creativity to make something cohesive and beautiful with those ingredients. That’s what I love about doing this. It’s all on the fly according to what nature provides. So really, Mother Nature is my menu planner. 

You wear many hats as also a photographer, author, chef, wild forager and food stylist. Is there one aspect of your business you enjoy the most?

Hands down the creative process of conceptualizing and making a little “story,” if you will, about whatever project I am working on. I love recipe testing and development. I absolutely love creating menus but even more than that I love crafting a unique and memorable experience for people.

Five plants you feel most connected to

There is a very specific smell to the Los Angeles area but we have so many microclimates it’s hard to say! In the spring, in my area, it’s the combination of wild cucumber (not edible) and bur-chervil that create a heady perfume. In the drier and hotter months, the spiciness of the chaparral aromatics like the sagebrush and sages and further outside of Los Angeles, the creosote. In higher altitudes, the smell of pine and fir are so fresh and prominent, and no one can forget the delicate smell of elderflowers. So, that was a hard question to answer! If I must pin just five down, I guess they would be:

  • Nettles
  • Bur-chervil
  • Black sage
  • Elderflowers
  • White fir
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Five wild plants you recommend we add to our diet

Definitely nettles. Always the nettles. They can do no wrong as a cooked green, as a tea or dietary supplement.

Chickweed. My favorite delicate spring green. It’s such an important salad staple to me and can be used as a green and medicinally, as well. It’s also so abundant after it rains.

Dandelions. I love it when the entire plant is useable. The young flowers are edible (and used for making wine), as are the leaves and medicinally, the roots.

Cactus. It carries so many health benefits (pertaining to blood sugar levels and diabetes). Although a little difficult to harvest, it is easy to find even in a lot of California landscaping and a little goes a long way. Both the fruits and pads are edible. My favorite way to enjoy this is to blend the cactus pads with chia, lemon, agave and kiwi fruit and make a hydrating popsicle. Perfect for summer.

Elderberry. Besides being excellent flu and cold medicine, this plant is so versatile. The flowers and their pollen are a must for making cordial and the berries can be used fresh or dried. I like to use the dried berries in savory applications.

What has been your most unique adventure?

When Pascal and I first got together, we lived at the top of a slightly remote mountain, as in dirt roads and no street lights. We lived in a farm setting with many types of animals, bees, and critters. That was a pretty immersive introduction to nature for me. I have not worn a pair of heels since this time. We decided to use only manual powered cooking equipment or primitive equipment for a few months. All I can say is that it was both challenging and magical at the same time. Note: It’s extremely difficult to get stiff peaks with egg whites at a high altitude using a manual hand blender.

What is next for you? Any adventures planned?

We’re both moving more into teaching, writing and traveling and hopefully a combination of all of those things. We’re going to try and plan a trip to Oaxaca this year and experience another ecosystem and food journey. I’m also in the planning stages of opening my own place that will be a restaurant as well as teaching center – which is the dream.

How does your work speak to women about furthering their voice and innovative journey? 

This question goes hand in hand with the last question, BTW. It really is as simple as doing what you love. And if you are not sure what it is that you love, ask yourself what you tend to be doing when you truly have down time. What do you find yourself researching or searching for information and knowledge about the most? That will definitely give you a clue.

I can only speak for myself, but I spent a lot of time thinking about what I really wanted to do and would dream about it while going through the motions of my daily life. I can’t tell you how much energy that takes and I know why I was so tired all of the time. The hard part is, well, just doing it. Why? In my case, I had the running dialogue of “Am I good enough at what I do?” “What if I fail?” “What if people don’t get what I’m doing?”

I know I’m not unique with those thoughts. I think many people let those three questions stop them from achieving what they truly want. So, I decided to answer those questions as though I were from the future. “Yes, you are absolutely great at what you do.” “You’re not going to fail, you’re going to adapt.” “Who cares if people get what you are doing. If you are really inspired, you will be inspiring.”

Biggest tip you can give to people wanting to introduce nature into their lives

I don’t think you have to go camping to introduce nature into your life. Sometimes it can be as simple as eating dinner outside in your back yard away from your phone. Plant something…anything. A tiny little potted plant that you care for daily is a beautiful way to create a bond with nature, too. If you do go for a stroll, take a plant field guide out with you and identify and really get to know one plant really well. Repeat each time you take a walk or hike and soon you’ll have your own little mental library of plants.

Where do you choose to go decompress in nature?

We’re out in nature fairly often, to be honest, and I feel like the more often you are in nature, the less you have to decompress. The great thing about Los Angeles is that you’re not far from nature wherever you are. We have friends and clients in extraordinarily scenic and tranquil areas like Malibu and Topanga and friends with properties in the high desert, too, which is such a gorgeous landscape before it gets too hot. We were just in Palm Springs during the super bloom of desert flowers for a corporate retreat and it was breathtaking. So, I guess it’s a “hazard of the job,” that we get to spend so much time in beautiful settings already. We take road trips up the coast occasionally, but I happen to love the mountains and the cooler air that the higher altitudes have. Taking a drive through Angeles National Forest and stopping at a few of the camps for a mini-camping experience is always something I love to do. Nothing fancy, just spectacular views, an amazing picnic, and good company. That’s all you need.

 

Learn more about Chef Mia and get her book at transitionalgastronomy.com. 


Molly

Molly Helfend, herbalist and environmental activist, graduated from University of Vermont in 2016 with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies and a concentration in Holistic Health. She will be attending University of Kent in Canterbury, England to receive her Masters Degree in Ethnobotany in 2017. She has worked for Urban Moonshine, Greenpeace and received her training with Spoonful Herbals. Her goal is to receive her PHD and become a professor at University of California Santa Cruz. Molly resides in Monte Nido, California.  

In health, Interview, Local, May, People, Tips Tags restaurant
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michael falso

Vegan Top Chef - Michael Falso

February 16, 2017

Article by Sima Morrison and Karli Quinn

Michael Falso is a name that most foodies in the Los Angeles/New York scene perk up to. That’s because he is one of the most prestigious plant-based chefs in the country. He has the eye for plating scrumptious raw foods and executing the most diverse innovative dishes. Michael is an award winning and classically trained chef who is consistently coming up with cutting edge mind-blowing recipes. We had the pleasure to find out more about his culinary life, his inspirations and his favorite foods and ingredients. Enjoy.

Describe your outlook on food, your journey, and what it means to you to be a plant-based chef.

While I was working for Mario Batali at Del Posto right out of culinary school, I was eager to eat at all the legendary high-end restaurants in New York that I’d heard about for years. I started eating out all the time and food became the center of my world. I wanted to know (and eat) everything I could. At first, I started to gain a little bit of weight here and there but I was always encouraged that this was normal for a chef - the adage implied in this industry is, after all,  “never trust a skinny cook.” After about a year of continuously gaining weight, I started to have some serious health issues that I could not ignore and that appeared out of nowhere. I was soon diagnosed with high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and I was considered to be “pre-diabetic” all within a month’s time. I was constantly struggling with a state of pure exhaustion and fatigue, frequent migraines and dangerously bloody noses—which I thought was a result from hard work in the restaurant industry but I started to realize that “something” else was very wrong. The problem was I had no clue where to begin.

There was a hot yoga studio across from my apartment and I started doing hot yoga, almost religiously 5 days a week determined to get better and get my weight under control. In the hot room I couldn’t last for more than 3 minutes standing up. I was embarrassed, ashamed, and really disappointed in myself. In the hot yoga room, you are always encouraged to look at yourself in the mirror. And I had realized at this point that it was the first time in my adult life that I was looking at myself - into my own eyes - and seeing who I was, clearly. I didn’t like what I saw. During yoga classes, I would watch myself and sometimes cry—watching my oversized-self struggle to get into the poses. Instead of shame, the yoga teachers were compassionate and encouraging—even if stern at times. They would go out of their way to make sure that I was taken care of and that I wouldn’t just give up. After about 6 months of struggling through the 90 minute yoga class, I was able to complete the entire class for the first time. I lost a little weight at first but I was still eating the Standard American Diet. While waiting in line for class one day, I overheard two people talking about this restaurant Pure Food and Wine…and that they would go get green juices before class. I had never had a green juice at this point.

As a little bit more time passed, I began doing my own research about nutrition and started reading books on my way to work…I was averaging 10-12 books a month consuming all I could about “healthy” eating and nutrition—an endless sea of confusing and conflicting information—but the one thread that was the same throughout was the importance of fruit and vegetables. One of the most profound books was “Green Smoothie Revolution” by Victoria Boutenko that was the impetus to get me to buy a vitamix and start drinking green smoothies—primarily to lose weight, and I started drinking 3 smoothies a day, even bringing them to work at the restaurant. For 2 weeks I drank only smoothies and the most peculiar thing started to happen. At first I was starving and miserable, but then I started to crave them. I lost 15 pounds that very week but I also felt I had more energy, I was sleeping better, and I was much happier and cheerier—and I had a hard time believing it was the smoothies alone.

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After about 4 weeks of only drinking 3 huge smoothies a day, I was asked by a friend to actually dine at Pure Food and Wine. I knew that it claimed to be a raw restaurant, and I really had no idea what that meant or what it would come to mean to me. I just assumed it was vegetable plates and pickles. I planned on only having a smoothie but I was so taken by the menu, the presentation, the ingredients, and the fact that the restaurant was jam-packed on a Tuesday night that I thought I had to try out some of the food. I didn’t expect anything special, and perhaps that is why I had such a strong reaction to it. There I was, working in a newly minted 4-star restaurant by the New York Times, having graduated from The Culinary Institute of America - it probably was the first time I’d ever been at a vegan restaurant. I ordered the Heirloom Tomato Lasagna and after my first bite I was so overcome that I couldn’t speak. I remember the explosion of flavors were so intense, yet so balanced, refreshing, and stunningly simple. I then had a great epiphany—if food that isn’t cooked can taste this good, and this satisfying, why bother cooking food at all? I wanted to know how this was possible. How could it be possible? These questions rattled through my mind as I continued to work at Del Posto and I would taste (and spit out rich sauces, meats, and fish) as it was part of my job to ensure things were cooked and seasoned properly. I didn’t want anyone at work to know that I was only drinking smoothies—and nothing else—because I feared they wouldn’t understand. Something had shifted that night and there was no going back. Within about a week’s time, I had quit Del Posto and started working at Pure Food and Wine as a line cook—it’s the best decision I’ve ever made in my life. I just needed to know, to understand how created this amazing raw food. Everything—raw ice creams, cheesecakes, crackers, cheeses - it was an entirely new world for me. Today I am not as strict as I used to be in terms of diet, but there were many years that I was very strict. I’ve learned that as a chef I have to have balance and I have to create that balance for myself. 

No one in my life was happy about my decision—at first. My friends, my family, my co-workers didn’t understand why I was giving up my career (as they said) to work at an unknown restaurant that served raw food. After having dined at Pure that night, I literally became vegan overnight and for the first time I considered myself as vegan because there was no way I was ever going back to my old way of eating - there was only going forward. I ended up losing over 100 pounds in about 6 months. My entire life started to shift drastically and lots of things started fall into place—so much so that I even decided to switch coasts and come live in LA without any hesitation. 

 

Where is your favorite place to dine out in Los Angeles and New York?

My favorite place to eat out in Los Angeles is an Ethiopian restaurant called Meals by Genet. It’s not vegan, but the chef Genet is vegan and takes special care with her veggie options, it’s absolutely delicious. It’s food that is designed to be shared and eaten with your hands. I normally don’t eat tofu—not for any other reason than I just don’t seem to consume it all that much, but her tofu “tibs” would easily please any die-hard carnivore. 

In New York, one of my favorite places to eat is in Little India and it’s called Saravana Bhavan. It’s a chain restaurant that has locations all over the world, however it’s my favorite place to eat dosas. Every single time that I am in New York I eat there. I’ve been going for over 10 years and it seems like nothing has changed at all. 

What one ingredient would you say you use the most in the kitchen?

The one ingredient I use most in the kitchen is truly cold pressed extra virgin olive oil. It's the one ingredient that I will reach for every single day - whether cooking or making raw foods and salad dressings. One of the myths circulating in nutrition circles has been that you should not cook or saute at all with olive oil, and even more fragile extra virgin oil, because its fragile to heat. The truth is that olive oil is extremely durable and mostly made of mono-unsaturated fat that don't as easily oxidize by heating as polyunsaturated oils like corn or sunflower oils--which should not be heated at all. Olive oil contains many antioxidants (many, many more in extra virgin oil) that prevent the oil from degrading while its being heated, but this protection can only go so far. Olive oil, and extra virgin olive oil, does not degrade until it comes close to the temperature of 392F (200C) - which is well above its smoking point. The smoke that any oil gives off is toxic and the oil itself becomes carcinogenic when it reaches this point - the same as with any oil. However, olive oil has been used for thousands of years as a primary oil for good reason.

Name a few staples that you keep on hand in the kitchen.

I always have cinnamon, maca, lucuma, vanilla powder, and pink Himalayan salt. These are the first things that I buy when I’m moving. I often use them in combination or alone—whether in a nut milk, tonic, or smoothie. 

You have opened some of the most successful plant based restaurants in Los Angeles, where do you get inspiration from to create your recipes?

Thank you! Well, honestly, I get inspiration from everywhere—even very unrelated disciplines and experiences. However, I think of recipe testing and creation very much like solving a puzzle, trying to get certain pieces to fit together. Sometimes it’s fast and obvious, other times it takes much, much longer. I really feel that everything that I make is some interpretation or representation of something I had or experienced previously.

I jokingly say that the ingredients tell me what to do with themselves—and I’m only half joking. I say half because, of course, ingredients are not literally speaking to me. Something reverberates within me and I just intuitively know how much to use, in what amounts, and in specific combinations. It doesn’t always happen that simply or all at one time, but in steps and missteps. It can take one time to make a great recipe or twenty-five times; it’s all very relative. But the commonality at the end of the process is that when looking at the completed recipe, everything seems so obvious. It’s almost like there’s a moment where you say to yourself, “duh” and it all makes sense and becomes obvious in the process. That’s usually an indication to me that the process is complete and I can stop tinkering for the time being, because ultimately, I never stop tinkering or editing.

I suppose it’s like writing a poem. You have an idea, you start writing out the lines and adding them up. Usually, the words are ultimately trimmed down to their most essential points and to me that is when the collection of words becomes an actual poem. A poem that can be understood in different ways and interpreted without necessarily revealing the why’s and how’s of everything. Somehow each part functions for the completion of the whole revealing some universal truth or experience or feeling. That is much like a recipe and the process of editing is a very big part of that process.   

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What has been one of your biggest challenges in your career, especially living in a city that is very tapped into health and wellness?

Having gone to culinary school, I thought I knew a lot about food. Working with raw food forced me to question and re-examine everything that I thought I knew and see it through a different set of standards. My good friends from culinary school were very upset with me and thought that I was crazy. They would argue with me and get quite mad. My family, and more particularly, my mom, was concerned I was becoming anorexic because she thought that I wasn’t eating. Friends would try to take me to restaurants and order for me, and then actually have fights with me when I wouldn’t. They just couldn’t understand what I was doing, why I was doing it, and they thought it was just a passing phase and a fad. Maybe at one time I did, too, but there was something more there. After a few months, the tensions calmed and my friends started accepting that I would only eat vegan food that happened to be raw. I would make them salads and small items to persuade them to try and they were all usually shocked at how flavorful everything was—but as impressed as they were, they always thought of it as “just” a salad—even if it was delicious. They didn’t see what I made as respectable “food.”

In a lot of ways I felt like I had to completely start over. I had to re-learn food, what it means, what it is, and what purpose it served in my life. This was the first time I made the connection that the food you eat is directly related to health and how you feel in general. I bought a dehydrator and started to learn how to soak and sprout, how to manipulate nuts, how to blend textures and use them in strange new ways, how to use sea weeds, chia seeds, how to ferment, how to pickle—the list can go on and on and on. These things were familiar to me, but new at the same time because I never looked at them in terms of nutrition. Some of my culinary friends that are still working in traditional high-end restaurants don’t know how to make their own mustard, which I think is a shame. I think it’s these little details that makes my food different. Today there seems to be a lot more open-mindedness about eating healthier and things like flaxseeds, chia seeds, and nutritional yeast are starting to pop up everywhere, even in places like Walmart. That was not the case ten years ago. Now, people are more willing to try foods of all types and varieties. It was a huge challenge to get people to realize eating healthy doesn’t have to be flavorless, boring, and unsatisfying. In Los Angeles, we are lucky because healthy eating is chic and a part of the culture, so naturally, there is always a vegan, paleo, gluten and/or dairy free option wherever you go to eat. In New York, this type of thinking has started to take root but it doesn’t compare to Los Angeles. 

 

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What is your ideal working environment?

My ideal working environment is one that encourages constant growth and exploration. I am always asking questions and wondering why. I’m always tinkering. I like to watch things change and evolve. It keeps things interesting and you are always on your toes!

What do you do to decompress after a workday?

I like to read to decompress. Sometimes it’s about food, but other times I like to check out completely and get lost in a book that has nothing to do with food. I speak French fluently, so I am usually trying to read classical French literature in order to maintain my fluency. It takes me to a different place quite literally and in my mind, using a different part of my brain altogether. Other times, I like to read about astrophysics—it sounds funny and pretentious, but it’s really not. I just find the fact that most of the minerals on Earth come from outer space—we are truly made of stars—and that the earth has 40,000 storms a day—with lightning striking every second. How is that not fascinating? And thankfully I can read about it without having to do any calculus or math!

In your opinion, what is one of the most nutrient-dense foods that someone with a plant based diet should get in his or her system on the daily?

Interesting question. I don’t think that there is one miraculous food, superfood or ingredient that people should consume. It’s more of an overall approach to eating fresher. I think people should try to avoid eating anything that comes out of a box and that has been highly processed. Even cartons of almond milk are misleading. They are often mostly water and maybe 1 to 2 almonds thickened with stabilizers and preservatives. If you make your own home made nut milk even once, it’s hard to go back to the store bought kind. Those kinds of little changes will have a big effect. The one thing that I do honestly believe everyone should take is a mineral supplement. A lot of people don’t realize you can all the vitamins in the world but without minerals, your body cannot use vitamins. Most people don’t know about minerals or think about them very often, but they are so vital to overall health yet largely disregarded.

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Tell us about your favorite juice or milk creation and its benefits

One of my favorite milks that I’ve made is my favorite for a couple of reasons. It’s called Black Magic Milk. First, I love it because it’s a creamy black/charcoal color, which I love seeing in my food, and second, because of the many health benefits it offers. The flavor is very peculiar to most people and I love it. The base is a rich, sprouted black sesame milk. It’s lightly sweetened with dates and enhanced with shilajit, he shou wu, cistanche, vanilla powder, a tiny splash of toasted sesame (to round out the flavors), and pink salt. The salt, I think, I absolutely necessary for this drink. It’s totally different from anything that I’ve ever tasted.  

Black sesame seeds are a great natural remedy for greying hair and contain the highest oil content of any seed. One tablespoon of sesame has significantly more calcium than a glass of milk, around eight times the quantity. Also, due to high iron content, it can alleviate anemia, contains tryptophan and assists in regulating mood and sleep. Black sesame is also reputed to help improve fertility.

Shilajit is extremely powerful and mineralizing. It supports fertility, improves energy production at the cellular level, and protects the heart due to high antioxidant activity while improving memory due to high fulvic acid content among many, many other things. 

He Shou Wu, like black sesame, also prevents hair loss and premature greying, supports the functions of the internal organs, nourishes the reproductive system and helps balance blood pressure.

Cistanche is an excellent mood supporting herb and has gained the reputation of being a serious libido enhancer, but also as the same time a very potent physical energy enhancer for much the same reason. It is powerful, yet gentle, enhancing immune function and possessing strong anti-aging, antioxidant, and neuroprotective properties.

What is one thing you wish you could change about our food system?

This is a loaded question for me that has many parts.  I would like nothing more than to change the way we look at the food system in terms of quality and waste. Our soils are very depleted and overworked. Factory farming is unavoidable but it doesn’t have to be such a toxic cesspool of mediocrity. Eating more locally and seasonally has a lot to do with eating the better quality and more nutritious foods. It doesn’t have to be an all or nothing approach, but visiting farmers markets is really a great way to get fresh, vibrant food—and you also get the ability to know your farmer personally, which isn’t so common in our high-tech digital world.

For example, strawberries are available year round yet the most sumptuous strawberries only seem to appear during summer. I would bet that these delicious summer berries are much, much more nutrient dense than the out of season, astringent, barely red berries. Fruits and vegetables are not allowed to ripen as long as they need in order to get the longest shelf life and to survive shipping. Not only is the flavor and texture completely compromised but the nutritional value also suffers as well. In the restaurant industry there is an excessive amount of daily waste. Most people outside the industry don’t know and those in the industry are desensitized because we are conditioned to think it is a normal part of the process. It’s really staggering to see how much food—a lot of it still perfectly good—goes straight into the trash every week. 

In Conscious Living, health, Interview, Local, People Tags food, chef, restaurant, raw
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Elote

July 29, 2015

If you asked ten locals what the best restaurant in Sedona is, it’s more than likely ten of them would tell you Elote. Chef Jeff Smedstad has maintained a clear vision to serve the finest food inspired by his 15 years of travel through Mexico, where he cultivated the taste he would later bring to Sedona. 

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In July, Travel Tags restaurant, sedona, mexican cuisine, food, elote
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ChocolaTree Organic Oasis

July 29, 2015

Obviously the town watering hole, Chocolatree is the only place in Sedona to get a full vegan meal, filled with an energy you feel the minute you walk in the door. A vision developed by father, daughter, husband team (David, Jen and Kelly) over a period of 6 years, the restaurant oozes community with its impromptu tea services, day and night music events and weekly workshop offerings. The sacred garden patio will have you grateful for each moment, as time slips away into eternity where you receive a chance to admire the epitome of full bloom, complete with a hammock lined path in this oasis within an oasis. There’s even a room dedicated to chocolate, which you’ll immediately experience if you come during production time when the smell of the intoxicating cacao fills the entire restaurant. This world-renowned restaurant is a place not to be missed, so be sure to make a stop.

How would you describe ChocolaTree Organic Oasis?

A sanctuary created to nurture authenticity. 

How do you create a thriving team?

Their mothers/fathers created them. We just all come together to be our authentic selves, in service to our vision. (ultimate vision below) 

Who do you admire?

Ghandi, Mother Theresa, babies, Swami Sivananda, Martin Luther King, Swami Vishnudevananda, animals, my dogs.

Why?

Because of their authenticity and they spoke up about their vision and did what they could to carry it out. 

If you could be invisible for one day, what would you do?

What kind of invisible are we talking? If just invisible not everything I touch as well - I would go to the largest inhumane factory farming opperations and free the animals. Let them all fly and run free. If everything I touch is also invisible or I have an invisible cloak - and if I could get in and out of any gold/silver vault (stolen in the first place) then that's where I would go. Then use those moneys to bust the factory farming operations and let the animals free. 

What is one thing people can do to elevate their health? 

Remember, we are only a dream of a dream. Do what you feel in your soul and the rest will take care of itself. 

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If you could give one piece of advice to pass on to the next generation, what would it be?

Just to say, you are loved. and keep a positive perspective. 

What is your ultimate vision?

I see a world of natural beauty where every child is born into their very own domain of clean air, pure waters and a garden growing in a splendid paradise. - this extends to all the animals of the world too.

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ChocolaTree Organic Oasis

1595 W. State Route 89A
Sedona AZ 86336
928-282-2997

Keep up with ChocolaTree Organic Oasis on Instagram, Facebook, and their website!  

In July, Travel, People Tags chocolatree, chocolate, raw chocolate, sedona, restaurant
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Because the Wind

July 7, 2015

Daniel defines intimate dining from his Because The Wind farm to table culinary dinners set in the chef’s private loft. His vibrant presentation and warm hospitality are characteristics of an authentically crafted LA respite, with eight courses to convince you a home cooked meal is always best. The plated event also acts as an experiment, melding people with art and food, all while acting as an immersive catalyst for connection. It is clear this lyricist disguised as a chef creates with vision and intention with all he does and we took pleasure in witnessing this firsthand.

What led you to become a chef?

There are so many instances in our lives that you try to pinpoint as the “aha” moment of self-realization, the moment you figure out what it is you want to become. For me, being a chef materialized during college. I dual majored in Anthropology and Sociology and amidst learning about cultural landscapes and behaviors I was awestruck by the beauty and knowledge that food held. It is the driving force of cultural exchange.

What is "Because the Wind”?

Because the Wind, is the name of a private dining “restaurant/party” at my loft in Downtown L.A. Its name derives meaning from the notion that beauty is a function of the rusticity of nature. The wind is an analogy of time.

I created Because the Wind as a way to cook the food that I love in an atmosphere free from pretense or standardization. It is both a social function and experiment, and perhaps a product of my studies, to create an environment where strangers meet one another amidst music, art and food.

If you could have anything for your birthday meal -- what would you have?

Thinly sliced raw conch with lemon and salt, while sitting on a beach somewhere off the south atlantic coast..

If you were to write a book about your life, what would it be called?

Because the Wind.

Favorite restaurant?

I tell my self that I have not found it yet so that I strive to create it, but so far, the most perfect meal I have had was at a small restaurant in Kyoto called Gion Owatari. It was a small but perfect little space. When you enter you walk through a small garden into the private 8 seat bar where the chef questions your notion of restraint and beauty dish after dish.

What inspires your food?

My food is inspired by fallen trees, weathered rocks and the cracks in old buildings.

What’s one question you are asking yourself these days?

How do I preserve ideas while continually changing?

What is your ultimate vision?

To be able to make others feel some type of emotion through my food, preferably good emotions

What rituals keep you in a creative state?

Drinking coffee, daydreaming and being immersed in nature.

Keep in touch with Daniel & his dinners on his Instagram and website!

In Local, People Tags food, restaurant
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Mesa Verde

May 28, 2015

Mesa Verde is the zenith of vegetarian dining.  Chef (and guitarist and painter) Greg Arnold culminates his skills to deliver a symphony of the most brilliant flavors.  We devoured multiple courses with Scott & Nitsa of Sun Potion.  Giggles were had, jaws were dropped, bellies were filled.

Keep up with Mesa Verde on Facebook, Instagram and their website

Tel: 805-899-8811

1919 Cliff Dr,
Santa Barbara, CA 93109

Keep up with Mesa Verde on their website!


In Travel Tags Santa Barbara, food, vegetarian, restaurant
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