Some of the tips will be around plant-based food, cooking, and eating with recipes, culinary (cooking) techniques, and even food art. Other tips will focus on positivity, mindfulness, and self-care.
Meet Melanie Albert
As a little background for those of you who do not know me, a few highlights. I am the founder & CEO of Experience Nutrition in Phoenix, Arizona, and award-winning cookbook author.
- My passion is plant-based farm-to-table culinary, and I’ve led hundreds of cooking experiences, courses and retreats. I’m trained with 610 hours of plant-based culinary training.
- 2007 graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition / Certified International Health Coach
- 9 years marketing, branding, and licensing consultant with Weil Lifestyle, LLC/Andrew Weil, MD
- 5 years nutrition and cooking with former NFL players, catering and events at Super Bowls, and official Health & Wellness Partner of the NFL Alumni Association in 2011.
- 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher and nearly 20 years practicing yoga.
- For decades, I’ve lived my passion around healthy lifestyle, cooking, and eating, and am happy to share ideas with you.
- I’ve been a work-from-home entrepreneur for 25 years; thus I have decades of personal experience with being at home, and enjoying it.
I hope you are inspired by some of the motivational food and lifestyle tips I share with you.
Experience Nutrition: Food & Lifestyle Tip of the Day: Cook Intuitively…with what’s in Your Refrigerator.
What is Intuitive Cooking?
With Intuitive Cooking, we pay attention to food. We notice the shapes, colors, flavors, and aromatherapy. By listening to our heart or gut, we choose a few foods we wish to purchase (at local farmers markets, if possible). When it’s time to cook, we pay attention to our bodies. What are we craving. Which foods are we visually attracted to. Then we cook with those foods and enjoy our meals.
During our stay-at-home, it is also important to cook with our intuition. We listen to our bodies and senses. And, we cook with what’s available in our kitchens during these days when our food options may be limited.
5 Simple Steps to Get Started with Intuitive Cooking
- Learn basic culinary (or cooking) skills or techniques and then use those skills to intuitively create dishes and meals with ease and confidence.
- Cook with what’s in your kitchen.
- Use a recipe as a guide.
- Substitute ingredients in the recipe with what you have in your refrigerator.
- Have fun experimenting and enjoy your creation.
Intuitive Cooking Avocado Salsa Recipe
Today, with intuitive cooking in mind, I created a very simple Avocado Salsa with what was in my refrigerator and little edible garden. This is a quick and easy lunch or snack. You’ll need an avocado, an aromatic (any onion), garlic (if you have it), a small tomato, citrus (lemon or lime), a fresh herb (parsley, basil, cilantro, marjoram), and sea salt. Plus, include optional ingredients for plating (such as broccoli or cauliflower).
Use this recipe as a guide for Avocado Salsa with whatever veggies are in your refrigerator. Some ideas: Green or red bell peppers, carrots, celery, cucumbers, olives.
Serves 1
Simple Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 2 tbsp onions
- ½ tsp garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small tomato or ½ cup mini tomatoes
- ½ tsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp fresh herbs, such as basil, cilantro, or marjoram
- Pinch sea salt
- Optional: few broccoli stems
Simple Steps
- Chop ingredients.
- Toss all ingredients into a bowl.
- Mix with a fork.
- Mindfully plate.
- Enjoy.
Please share your Avocado Salsa creations with us on Instagram @nutritionauthor #experiencenutrition and let me know if you have any cooking questions.
