Top 11 Reasons to Go on a Plant-Based Cooking Retreat
by Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO of Experience Nutrition Group, LLC in Phoenix, Arizona, Award-winning Cookbook Author, and Plant-Based Intuitive Cooking Expert
If you’re still curious…
During our Sedona Plant-Based Cooking Fall 2019 Retreat, September 13-16, you’ll experience several days of hands-on, simple plant-based cooking, mindfulness in the kitchen and eating. We’ll enjoy a farm-to-table cooking experience at a local urban farm. You’ll experience self-care with hiking and yoga in the beauty of Sedona.
In the memorable life-changing retreat, our intention is for you to enjoy the cooking and self-care experiences during the retreat and then most importantly take home the experiences and plant-based cooking learning from the retreat to make positive lifestyle changes in your lives.
LEARN TO COOK SIMPLE, BEAUTIFUL PLANT-BASED MEALS
Have fun with hands-on interactive cooking with Plant-Based Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. With hands-on interactive cooking you’ll learn culinary techniques to prepare a variety of plant-based breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.
ONE: Learn How to Prepare Simple Delicious Healthy Breakfasts
Learn the basic culinary techniques to prepare plant-based breakfast options and when you return home intuitively create your own breakfasts with your favorite whole grains, nuts, seeds, and fruit.
Whole Grains (gluten-free)
Quick, easy, and tasty nut and seed milk
Superfood Smoothies
Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding
TWO: Learn to Cook a Variety of Plant-Based Lunches
For lunch, our focus is preparing beautiful, tasty raw salads, raw taco, and cold soup.
Raw Massaged Kale Salad with fruit, berries, nuts, and seeds. 3-ingredient salad dressing.
Avocado Tartare with fresh veggies
Raw Almond Walnut Taco with Quick Pickled Veggies
Cold Veggie Soup
Raw Dehydrated Crackers
THREE: Learn how to prepare tasty, healthy plant-based Appetizers, Meals, and Dessert for Plant-Based Dinners
For dinner, we’ll cook complete plant-based meals with delicious Mediterranean appetizers, Veggie Main Dishes, and beautiful, tasty desserts.
Mediterranean Appetizers
Hummus, Hempseed Tabouli, Olive Tapenade
Meals
Veggie Sautés (Roots & Greens)
Roasted Veggie Flatbread
Turmeric Lentil Soup
Veggie Brown Rice Pilaf
Raw Deconstructed Lasagna
Deconstructed Lasagna
Desserts
Raw Superfood Pie
Raw Cacao Berry Pie
Aromatic Apple Crisp
Raw Cacao Berry Pie
FOUR: Farm-to-Table Plant-Based Cooking Class at an Arizona Organic Farm
Enjoy a true farm-to-table experience. Tour a local organic farm with an Arizona urban farmer. Have fun cooking your dinner right at the farm with just-harvested produce from the farm and local farmers markets. Enjoy your culinary creations in the beauty of the farm.
Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition. Getting set for a farm-to-table cooking experience.
FIVE: Enjoy an afternoon Snack at a Local Sedona Plant-Based Restaurant
After hiking in Sedona, we’ll stop by a popular organic vegetarian Sedona restaurant to enjoy their delicious plant-based creations and chocolate treats.
MINDFUL COOKING & EATING
SIX: Practice Mindfulness while Cooking, Plating, and Eating
During the retreat, we’ll focus on mindfulness and being present throughout the cooking process. We’ll practice mindfulness while cooking our meals, beautifully plating our food, and enjoying our meals together.
Mindful Cooking. During the retreat, we will focus on mindfulness and being present while cooking, as part of the cooking process and a form of self-care. We will:
Mindfully choose the ingredients (beautiful veggies) and herbs and spices for our dishes.
Mindfully chop our food. (Learn basic knife skills).
Enjoy the beauty, the colors, the textures, the shapes, and the aromatherapy of our food.
Mindfully set up our mise en place. That is, get all of our ingredients in place before we start cooking for mindfulness and organization.
Learn to plate your foods beautifully. Since we eat with our eyes first, you will learn skills to plate foods beautifully. You’ll learn fundamental principles in the art of plating. You’ll have the opportunity to practice plating skills every time we cook and begin to develop your own plating style. We’ll use edible garnishes, herbs, and flowers in our plating to elevate the eye-appeal of our meals.
Mindful Eating.We’ll mindfully enjoy our meals in the beautiful Sedona environment with our retreat community. We’ll enjoy meals in the beauty of the retreat house and in the beauty of the Sedona Red Rocks. We’ll pause, slow down, and really enjoy the beauty and flavors of the food we prepare.
SELF CARE IN THE MAGIC OF SEDONA
SEVEN: Take time for your own self-care, relaxing in the beauty of the retreat house. Get away from day-to-day life. Retreats are the perfect place to really take time for you. Away from work, responsibilities, and technology. During your Sedona retreat, unplug and allow yourself to settle into quiet, to relax, recharge and reflect.
Relax at our Retreat House
EIGHT: Enjoy hiking and nature in beautiful, magical Sedona, Arizona. In Sedona, we can immerse ourselves in nature by hiking with the grounding red rock and expansive big sky environment which provides the perfect place to exercise and unwind. In Sedona, we’ll hike in the Vortex energy, breath in the fresh air, and enjoy the magnificent sunsets.
Cathedral Rock: Melanie Albert’s very favorite spot in Sedona.Hike at the Sedona Airport Vortex
NINE: Practice yoga on the Sedona Rocks and our private yoga studio at the retreat house. Participate in a yoga class or practice on your own for self-care, quiet, and meditation during the retreat.
Retreat House Private Yoga Studio
Enjoy One-of-A Kind Sedona Experiences
TEN: Enjoy Memorable One-of-A-Kind Sedona Experiences.Only in Sedona experiences. During the retreat, you’ll experience the Sedona magic with Spiritual Reading, and a private Kiva Ceremony.
ELEVEN: Visit Magnificent Antelope Canyon. As a special add-on to the retreat, visit one of the most magnificent spots in Arizona on our adventure day to the Antelope Canyon, one of the most beautiful, mesmerizing, photographic locations in the world. A photographer’s dream, the canyon is known for its wave-like structure and the light beams that shine directly down into the openings of the canyon, creating a supernatural appearance.
If you and your friends are interested in our Fall 2019 Plant-Based Cooking & Self-Care Retreat, September 13-16, 2019 in Sedona, Arizona, please fill out the form and I’m happy to share more and answer your questions. – Melanie Albert
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition, Intuitive Cooking Expert, and Award-Winning Cookbook Author
I am so honored to share my passions for healthy, beautiful plant-based food on The List TV Show to the show’s audience in 41 markets across the USA. This segment was a lot of fun to create and shoot with Producer Jacqui Denker and Co-host Segun Oduolowu.
Producer Jacqui Denker asked me if I knew how to work with “Chokeberries.” Well, in all honesty, I had not heard of Chokeberries, but did a quick “Google Search” as we all do, and found that they were also called Aronia. Chokeberries sounded as though they would be similar to the superfood berries, Acai or Macai. I thought it would be fun to create with Chokeberries which I had never even tasted and agreed to work on the Chokeberry tv segment on Chokeberries with The List.
Northwest Wild Foods: Our Chokeberry Source
Little did I know after spending half a day driving around Phoenix that Chokeberries were not readily available locally here in Arizona. I was not able to find frozen, dried, or powdered chokeberries anywhere.
With a little more research, I was thrilled to find Chokeberries at Northwest Wild Foods an incredible family-owned company located between the temperate Puget Sound and the rugged Cascade Mountains of the Pacific Northwest in Burlington, Washington. Northwest Wild Foods grows and harvests rare and natural berries of their region.
Within two days my supply of frozen, dried and powdered Chokeberries and other beautiful Wild and Organic berries arrived at my home. It was time to begin recipe testing for The List TV show segment. Honestly, I had so much fun creating these recipes to receive the antioxidant benefits of the chokeberries while enjoying a tasty Smoothie Bowl, Salad, and Dessert.
Get to Know Chokeberries
Chokeberries have been extremely popular in Europe for over 50 years, and grow extremely well in the northern US climate. Chokeberries are similar in size to blueberries with a deeper darker blackish blue color and are rich in anthocyanins, which have high anti-inflammatory effects in the body.
The Farm at South Mountain. Soil & Seed Garden
Meanwhile, to bring our local Arizona farmers into the dishes, I reached out to my friend, passionate Lead Gardener Billy Anthony at the Soil & Seed Garden at The Farm at South Mountain, a beautiful urban farm where I hold cooking events and located less than a mile from my home. We discussed what was growing and brainstormed the local seasonal greens we could include in the salad along with edible flowers and herbs for garnish.
Some of my favorite greens were growing, including Glacier Lettuce (Ice Plant), Minutina, Spinach, and my favorite floral Shungiku (chrysanthemum). Plus, fresh herbs oregano, mint, and basil were in season. And, this time of year, in Phoenix, Billy is growing a wide range of stunning, tasty edible flowers that offer beauty and taste to dishes. I was especially excited about Pansies, Chrysanthemum, Violas, and red Begonias.
Morning of The List TV Shoot: Chokeberry Recipe Prep
The morning of The List TV Shot, I prepared all three recipes before the crew arrived. For my own pleasure I enjoyed the Chokeberry Superberry Smoothie Bowl. Plus, I made another batch of the Chokeberry Lemon Pops with fresh pansies grown at The Farm at South Mountain and made the simple delicious Chokeberry Dressing.
The Refrigerator Set for the 3 Chokeberry Recipes
Our Set for The List TV Segment
Honored to invite The List crew into my kitchen: Multi-talented fun co-host Segun Oduolowu, creative Producer Jacqui Decker, and talented, meticulous cameraman, Ryan. Such a joy filming and enjoy our Chokeberry creations together.
A few outtakes from the tv shoot, with a behind the scene video and photos.
Segun’s Chokeberry Creations
During the shoot, I guided Segun to prepare the three Chokeberry recipes and, as always, so in awe of his willingness to have fun with the food and to creativity plate the dishes.
Enjoy a few photos from the shoot and the Dishes we created during the shoot.
Chokeberry Superberry Smoothie Bowl
Simple Greens & Berry & Walnut Salad with Chokeberry Dressing
Frozen Chokeberry Lemonade Pops
A little fun, getting set for the Chokeberry Lemonade Pops
The Chokeberry Recipes
Intuitively create a full day of meals with the power antioxidant-rich chokeberries (Aronia) which score 3-4 times higher on ORAC as blueberries. While chokeberries are tart and a little bitter, they are a powerful superberry for delicious smoothie bowls, salad dressings, and even frozen pops.
Chokeberry Superberry Smoothie Bowl
Simple Greens & Berry & Walnut Salad with Chokeberry Dressing
Frozen Chokeberry Lemonade Pops
Chokeberry Superberry Smoothie Bowl
Start the morning with an antioxidant- and protein-rich smoothie featuring powerful chokeberries (Aronia berries). Add hemp and chia seeds for plant protein and fats. Plus, dates and banana add sweetness to the smoothie. Enjoy with your favorite fresh or frozen berries, herbs, and edible flowers.
In our recipe with The List, we garnished with a superberry antioxidant frozen blend of wild Blueberries, wild Lingonberries, and wild Sea Buckthorn from Northwest Wild Foods.
Smoothie (1 serving)
Simple Ingredients
2 tsp chia seeds, pre-soaked in ¼ cup coconut water for 20 minutes
1 cup coconut water
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1 tsp chokeberry powder
¼ cup frozen chokeberries
1 Medjool dates, pitted and rough chopped
1 ripe bananas
Garnish: Edible flowers, fresh basil, frozen berries (such as wild blueberries, lingonberries, and sea buckthorn)
Chokeberry Smoothie Mise en Place
Simple Steps
Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender.
Add additional dates for sweetness, if desired.
Pour smoothie into a bowl.
Garnish with frozen berries, fresh basil, and edible flowers.
Mindfully enjoy.
Blend all ingredients.
Blend all ingredients in food processor.
All set to plate the Chokeberry Smoothie
Mindfully Plate and Enjoy your Chokeberry Superberry Smoothie
Enjoy your Chokeberry Smoothie.
Simple Greens & Berry & Walnut Salad with Chokeberry Dressing
Enjoy a simple fresh greens salad with tasty Chokeberry Honey Mustard Garlic Dressing. Add a few fresh or frozen berries, figs, and walnuts for a nutrient-rich fresh salad. For taste and beauty, garnish with fresh herbs (mint, basil, or oregano) and edible flowers.
Serves 2
Chokeberry Honey Mustard Garlic Dressing
Simple Ingredients
2 tbsp stone ground mustard
¼ cup organic extra virgin olive oil
Pinch sea salt
1 ½ tsp local honey
1/8 cup frozen chokeberries, mashed with spoon
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
Chokeberry Dressing Mise en Place
Simple Steps
Pour mustard, organic extra virgin olive oil, and sea salt into a small bowl.
Whisk until well combined.
Add honey, chokeberries, and garlic to the bowl.
Whisk until well combined.
Taste, and adjust flavor, as needed for more sweetness or saltiness.
Save to toss with the salad.
Whisk all ingredients until well combined and add more honey, mustard, or oil to suit your taste.
Greens & Berry Salad
Simple Ingredients
2 cups of greens, such as Spinach, Arugula, or Shungiku (Chrysanthemum greens)
3-4 fresh herb stems: Oregano, mint, or basil
¼ cup walnuts
3 dried figs, sliced
¼ cup fresh or frozen berries. Fresh mulberries or blueberries; Frozen wild blueberries, lingonberries, and blackberries.
Garnish: Edible flowers
Greens & Berry Salad Plating Mise en Place
Simple Steps
Place greens and fresh herbs into medium bowl.
Pour dressing over the greens and herbs.
Lightly toss to coat all greens and herbs with the dressing.
Add figs, walnuts, and berries to the greens.
Lightly toss.
Plate and garnish with extra berries and edible flowers.
Enjoy!
Frozen Chokeberry Lemonade Pops
Enjoy Superberry Chokeberry Lemonade Frozen Pops this Spring and Summer. Make your own home-made lemonade, add chokeberry powder, a few berries, a few edible flowers, freeze, and enjoy.
Makes four 3 ounce pops
Simple Ingredients
Chokeberry Lemonade
1 cup coconut water
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
1 apple, sliced
1 tsp chokeberry powder
1 date, rough chopped
Additional date(s), for desired sweetness
Garnish
Edible flowers
¼ cup frozen berries (such as wild blueberries, lingonberries, and sea buckthorn)
All set to make the Chokeberry Lemonade
Chokeberry Lemonade Pop Mise en Place
Simple Steps
Chokeberry Lemonade
Place coconut water, lemon juice, and apple in food processor or blender.
Add date and blend until smooth.
Taste and add lemon juice, apple, or date for desired sweetness.
Add chokeberry power and blend.
Freeze the Pops
Place frozen berries, banana slices, and/or edible flowers into frozen pop molds.
Pour Chokeberry Lemonade into the molds.
Freeze for 6 hours.
Remove from mold.
Chokeberry Frozen Pops ready for plating with Edible Pansies, Blueberries, Lingonberries, and Sea Buckthorn Berries
Enjoy a refreshing spring and summer treat.
Enjoy Chokeberry Lemonade Frozen Pops
A fun outtake video from The List TV Shoot with Segun Oduolowu. Thanks Jacqui Denker for the capture! Love working with both of you!
As a final note, if you are interested in learning about our Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self Care Retreat, September 13-16, 2019, you can learn more on the Experience Nutrition website, and if you are interested please let me know and we can chat.
View food differently with mindful cooking and eating.
Enjoy urban farm-to-table cooking experience.
Experience self-care with hiking and yoga.
Take home retreat experiences to be healthier & make positive long-term lifestyle changes.
During our Sedona Plant-Based Cooking Fall 2019 Retreat, you’ll experience several days of hands-on, simple plant-based cooking with organic food, mindfulness in the kitchen and eating. We’ll enjoy a farm-to-table cooking experience at a local urban farm. You’ll experience self-care with hiking and yoga in the beauty of Sedona.
In the memorable life-changing retreat, our intention is for you to enjoy the cooking and self-care experiences during the retreat and then most importantly take home the experiences and plant-based cooking learning from the retreat to make positive lifestyle changes in your lives.
Learn Simple Ways to Cook Healthy Plant-Based Organic Food
During the Sedona retreat, our key focus is simple, beautiful, healthy plant-based cooking. We’ll enjoy cooking and eating beautiful, fresh, delicious farm-to-table plant-based meals. Alongside award-winning cookbook author, Melanie Albert from Phoenix, Arizona, you’ll learn simple culinary skills for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
With interactive, hands-on cooking with local Arizona farmers organic produce, you’ll learn simple plant-based culinary techniques. We’ll focus on learning the cooking methods and guiding you to be intuitive with your cooking so you will be able to cook intuitively at home with seasonal produce grown by your local farmers.
All of the cooking is based on the anti-inflammatory way of eating, Mediterranean way of eating, and inspired by the Blue Zones, where people live the longest and healthiest lives. Learn during the retreat and feel confident to prepare the foods when you return home.
Award-Winning Cookbook Author, Melanie Albert at the Sedona Retreat House
Key Plant-Based Foods
During the retreat, you’ll learn simple plant-based culinary methods to cook key healthy plant-based foods. Our organic retreat meals feature as much local Arizona farmers food, as possible.
Roots & Greens
Whole Grains
Beans
Nuts & Seeds
Superfoods
Plant-Based Culinary Techniques
During all of the meals, you’ll learn a variety of cooking techniques to use when you return home. The culinary techniques during the retreat:
Proper steps to sauté veggies with flavor layering.
Steps to roast veggies for crispiness on the outside and a soft inside.
The process to cook flavorful veggie soups.
Simple steps to prepare whole grains perfectly every time.
Steps to create a 3-ingredient salad dressing.
Ways to create beautiful raw salads with what your local farmers are growing in season.
Steps to make raw dehydrated crackers.
Techniques to create simple raw sauces.
Plant-based dessert techniques with nuts, fruit, raw cacao, and superfoods.
Organic, Local Arizona Farmers Produce
RETREAT HIGHLIGHTS: Sedona Plant-Based Cooking Retreat with Award-Winning Cookbook Author, Melanie Albert
Sedona Eco-Retreat House: 3-Days and 3-nights at eco-retreat house in the beauty of Sedona, Arizona.
Noon-3:00pm Drive from Sedona to Phoenix for flights
ADD-ON TO RETREAT: ANTELOPE CANYON EXCURSION
Monday, September 16, 2019
6:00-7:00am Early Breakfast at Retreat House
7:00-8:00am Drive to Flagstaff
8:30-5:00pm Drive and Tour Antelope Canyon
5:30-7:30pm Dinner in Flagstaff
7:30pm+ Hotel in Flagstaff
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
8:00am-1:00pm Drive to Phoenix
To learn more about the retreat and to chat with retreat host, Melanie Albert, please fill out the form, or give me a call at 602.615.2486 or e-mail: Mel@MelanieAlbert.com
I look forward to connecting for both of us to get to know each other and to answer any questions about the retreat. — Melanie
ABOUT OUR LIGHT HOUSE Retreat House
Eco-Home. We are thrilled to hold our retreat at the Light House in Sedona, a truly eco-home with a collection of indoor and outdoor spaces created with a complimentary merging of Indonesian, Japanese, Moroccan and East Indian cultures. The Light House offers a full natural sensory environment with comforting courtyards, peaceful meditation gardens, hanging lounges, tranquil pools, and restful waterfalls.
Sedona Eco-Home Retreat House
Feng Shui.The Light House incorporates the principles of Feng Shui to create an environment that is energetically aligned promoting harmony, serenity, creativity, and vitality. An impressive cleansing crystal is strategically placed in the center of the house to ensure a healthy environment and numerous Feng Shui essentials are found throughout this landmark home. The Light House is the perfect environment to relax, reduce stress, and rejuvenate.
Welcome to our Retreat House
Salt-water Pool. Light House features a beautiful salt-water pool and Jacuzzi to unwind.
Retreat House Beautiful Salt Water Pool
Sedona Beauty. The natural outdoor beauty of Sedona is just out the back door with the beautiful Oak Creek and a glimpse of Cathedral Rock.
Our Retreat Home View of Cathedral Rock
Our Retreat Bedrooms
The Light House Retreat features 6 unique bedrooms, with a variety of beds and accommodates couples or singles. We welcome a group of friends or couples to attend the retreat
ONE: Downstairs Master with King and sitting room. Unique custom ‘pebble’ master bathtub and large glass steam shower.
TWO: Downstairs Off-Master with Queen. Private bedroom off Master. Shares master bathroom with ‘pebble’ bathtub and large glass steam shower.
Downstairs Master. King.
Master Bathroom
Downstairs Queen, off Master.
THREE: Downstairs Asia Room with King.Outdoor hallway to room with lounging sofa, desk and glass window views.
FOUR: Downstairs Bali Room with 2 Queens.Screen door access to outside lounging and garden areas.
FIVE: Upstairs Private King. Private outdoor patio with view of pool and Cathedral Rock. Shares bathroom with Sunrise Room.
SIX: Sunrise Room Upstairs Loft with Queen and Double. Fun loft. Shares bathroom with Private King.
ABOUT SEDONA
Beautiful, magical Sedona is a true oasis, a paradise in the middle of the northern Arizona desert. In Sedona, enjoy canyons, green forest, azure skies, and the dramatic red rock formations that glow in brilliant orange and red when illuminated by the rising or setting sun. Sedona offers adventures including red rock jeep tours, hiking, Slide Rock, and Oak Creek Canyon, as well spiritual healing, psychic readings, and energy vortexes. Sedona will have your senses buzzing for days! Sedona offers a unique, one-of-a- kind culture and is an experience of a lifetime.
To learn more about the retreat and to chat with retreat host, Melanie Albert, please fill out the form, or give me a call at 602.615.2486 or e-mail: Mel@MelanieAlbert.com
I look forward to connecting for both of us to get to know each other and to answer any questions about the retreat. — Melanie
Top 11 Reasons to Go on a Plant-Based Cooking Retreat
During our Sedona Plant-Based Cooking Fall 2019 Retreat, you’ll experience several days of hands-on, simple plant-based cooking, mindfulness in the kitchen and eating. We’ll enjoy a farm-to-table cooking experience at a local urban farm. You’ll experience self-care with hiking and yoga in the beauty of Sedona.
In the memorable life-changing retreat, our intention is for you to enjoy the cooking and self-care experiences during the retreat and then most importantly take home the experiences and plant-based cooking learning from the retreat to make positive lifestyle changes in your lives.
LEARN TO COOK SIMPLE, BEAUTIFUL PLANT-BASED MEALS
Have fun with hands-on interactive cooking with Plant-Based Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. With hands-on interactive cooking you’ll learn culinary techniques to prepare a variety of plant-based breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.
ONE: Learn How to Prepare Simple Delicious Healthy Breakfasts
Learn the basic culinary techniques to prepare plant-based breakfast options and when you return home intuitively create your own breakfasts with your favorite whole grains, nuts, seeds, and fruit.
Whole Grains (gluten-free)
Quick, easy, and tasty nut and seed milk
Superfood Smoothies
Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding
TWO: Learn to Cook a Variety of Plant-Based Lunches
For lunch, our focus is preparing beautiful, tasty raw salads, raw taco, and cold soup.
Raw Massaged Kale Salad with fruit, berries, nuts, and seeds. 3-ingredient salad dressing.
Avocado Tartare with fresh veggies
Raw Almond Walnut Taco with Quick Pickled Veggies
Cold Veggie Soup
Raw Dehydrated Crackers
THREE: Learn how to prepare tasty, healthy plant-based Appetizers, Meals, and Dessert for Plant-Based Dinners
For dinner, we’ll cook complete plant-based meals with delicious Mediterranean appetizers, Veggie Main Dishes, and beautiful, tasty desserts.
Mediterranean Appetizers
Hummus, Hempseed Tabouli, Olive Tapenade
Meals
Veggie Sautés (Roots & Greens)
Roasted Veggie Flatbread
Turmeric Lentil Soup
Veggie Brown Rice Pilaf
Raw Deconstructed Lasagna
Deconstructed Lasagna
Desserts
Raw Superfood Pie
Raw Cacao Berry Pie
Aromatic Apple Crisp
Raw Cacao Berry Pie
FOUR: Farm-to-Table Plant-Based Cooking Class at an Arizona Organic Farm
Enjoy a true farm-to-table experience. Tour a local organic farm with an Arizona urban farmer. Have fun cooking your dinner right at the farm with just-harvested produce from the farm and local farmers markets. Enjoy your culinary creations in the beauty of the farm.
Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition. Getting set for a farm-to-table cooking experience.
FIVE: Enjoy an afternoon Snack at a Local Sedona Plant-Based Restaurant
After hiking in Sedona, we’ll stop by a popular organic vegetarian Sedona restaurant to enjoy their delicious plant-based creations and chocolate treats.
MINDFUL COOKING & EATING
SIX: Practice Mindfulness while Cooking, Plating, and Eating
During the retreat, we’ll focus on mindfulness and being present throughout the cooking process. We’ll practice mindfulness while cooking our meals, beautifully plating our food, and enjoying our meals together.
Mindful Cooking. During the retreat, we will focus on mindfulness and being present while cooking, as part of the cooking process and a form of self-care. We will:
Mindfully choose the ingredients (beautiful veggies) and herbs and spices for our dishes.
Mindfully chop our food. (Learn basic knife skills).
Enjoy the beauty, the colors, the textures, the shapes, and the aromatherapy of our food.
Mindfully set up our mise en place. That is, get all of our ingredients in place before we start cooking for mindfulness and organization.
Learn to plate your foods beautifully. Since we eat with our eyes first, you will learn skills to plate foods beautifully. You’ll learn fundamental principles in the art of plating. You’ll have the opportunity to practice plating skills every time we cook and begin to develop your own plating style. We’ll use edible garnishes, herbs, and flowers in our plating to elevate the eye-appeal of our meals.
Mindful Eating. We’ll mindfully enjoy our meals in the beautiful Sedona environment with our retreat community. We’ll enjoy meals in the beauty of the retreat house and in the beauty of the Sedona Red Rocks. We’ll pause, slow down, and really enjoy the beauty and flavors of the food we prepare.
SELF CARE IN THE MAGIC OF SEDONA
SEVEN: Take time for your own self-care, relaxing in the beauty of the retreat house. Get away from day-to-day life. Retreats are the perfect place to really take time for you. Away from work, responsibilities, and technology. During your Sedona retreat, unplug and allow yourself to settle into quiet, to relax, recharge and reflect.
Relax at our Retreat House
EIGHT: Enjoy hiking and nature in beautiful, magical Sedona, Arizona. In Sedona, we can immerse ourselves in nature by hiking with the grounding red rock and expansive big sky environment which provides the perfect place to exercise and unwind. In Sedona, we’ll hike in the Vortex energy, breath in the fresh air, and enjoy the magnificent sunsets.
Cathedral Rock: Melanie Albert’s very favorite spot in Sedona.Hike at the Sedona Airport Vortex
NINE: Practice yoga on the Sedona Rocks and our private yoga studio at the retreat house. Participate in a yoga class or practice on your own for self-care, quiet, and meditation during the retreat.
Retreat House Private Yoga Studio
Enjoy One-of-A Kind Sedona Experiences
TEN: Enjoy Memorable One-of-A-Kind Sedona Experiences. Only in Sedona experiences. During the retreat, you’ll experience the Sedona magic with Spiritual Reading, and a private Kiva Ceremony.
ELEVEN: Visit Magnificent Antelope Canyon.As a special add-on to the retreat, visit one of the most magnificent spots in Arizona on our adventure day to the Antelope Canyon, one of the most beautiful, mesmerizing, photographic locations in the world. A photographer’s dream, the canyon is known for its wave-like structure and the light beams that shine directly down into the openings of the canyon, creating a supernatural appearance.
by Melanie Albert, Intuitive Cooking Expert, Award-winning Author of cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Eating with Real Whole Foods”, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC, in Phoenix, Arizona Get inspired at your local farmers market.It’s National Farmers Market Week in the USA, and today, as almost always on Saturday, I visited one of my favorite farmers’ markets, the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market. This market opened in 2005, just after I moved back to Phoenix and I have to say I’m so glad it did.A few reasons why I love this farmers’ market:
Organic Farmers. Three local organic certified small farmers sell their produce at this market. For me, this is key, as I focus on eating organic (no pesticides and no herbicides) and I personally know the farmers and have visited their farms around our Valley of the Sun.
Hydrate All Day. Every Day.
Community. There’s such a sense of friendly community with the vendors and people who visit the market. People who attend the market are true friends with the farmers and are happy to catchup on life and food. Plus, it’s fun to see how much people who attend the market have so much fun meeting other like-minded people at the market. Personal note, today, I met 3 people who work with American Airlines, a pilot and two flight attendants, which was interesting as my Mom was an Airline Stewardess in the 1950’s with American. Small world.
Fun. Going to the farmers’ market is fun. A great place to be on Saturday morning. Once a month, I teach the Taste of the Market Cooking Demo, where I shop the market and then show our Phoenix community how to intuitively prepare fresh, healthy dishes. Plus, the market offers demos including gardening, composting, and today they hosted a Watermelon Eating Contest.
For my Arizona friends, I’ll be leading the Taste of the Market on August 25, 2018, 10am. Hope to see you!
Interested in learning simple culinary skills and intuitive cooking, purchase my cookbook, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods.” I’ll gift wrap and mail a copy to you.Join my Simple Daily Plant-Based Eating Tips FB Group and get daily food and cooking tips.Interested in a cooking workshop, team building or corporate wellness event, would love to chat…
