Delicooks

...some foods are able to induce a relaxed state, others are more likely to heighten a state of stress, and some even help us to improve the quality of sleep or our sexuality...

Your background is in naturopathy and you collaborate on numerous publications covering issues related to healthy living.

What is your concept of gastronomy?
I see food as one of the most important resources we have for our bodies to function optimally. So we need to create dishes that take into account not only the flavors, the presentation or combinations of ingredients, but just as importantly, whether the ingredients and the cooking methods employed are the most appropriate for our health.

One of your projects is called The kitchen of happiness. Can you tell us what it’s about?
The kitchen of happiness has been out for almost two months and has been very well received. We bring together research and studies about the effects certain foods have on our bodies at both a physical and mental level. I then provide some recipes that contain this type of food. For instance, some foods are able to induce a relaxed state, others are more likely to heighten a state of stress, and some even help us to improve the quality of sleep or our sexuality. Of course, everything always has to looked at within a general framework of a planned diet because while food can help, it does not necessarily work miracles, per se.

Where did you get your love of food from?
As a child I loved watching TV shows where people were cooking. I copied down the recipes that I liked and then tried them out at home with disastrous results ... When I was older I worked on a TV show where there was a kitchen (just like the ones I saw on TV when I was little) and I was amazed by the alchemy of cooking. Eventually I made friends with one of the best chefs on the program and she let me go to the kitchen of her restaurant to help out, so I learned some of the basics. Later I worked as a pastry cook in Paris, but nothing thrilled me as much as natural cuisine. I’d already stopped eating meat by my twenties and I had enrolled on a natural cooking course. But life took me in other directions until finally it all started to come together again and I returned to my "roots", to do what I loved most: I combined my studies with naturopathy; and healthy cuisine is what I do now.

Your books and your recipes advocate a cuisine that’s balanced and respectful of the environment. In what way can we help the environment from our kitchens?
There’s lots we can do. To start with, we should eat organic whenever possible. In conventional agriculture chemicals are widely used that deplete the soil and pollute the ecosystem (as well as polluting our own organic system). Another important point is to practice sustainable consumption, ie use local products that are in season. There are some foods that travel many miles to get to our table with a very high energy costs: don’t forget that transport is responsible for greenhouse gas emissions. Also, the mass consumption of products derived from ruminants such as cattle (milk, meat) increases the greenhouse effect because these animals give off gases like methane, a gas that contributes up to 25 times more greenhouse gas than CO2. And finally I think we can also help the environment by selectively recycling garbage and avoiding the use of plastic grocery bags. Why not go back to the good old shopping cart?

What professional challenges do you still have ?
I love writing books that combine health and cooking tips. Right now I'm working on a book about "eating fresh" and another related to children.