COOKING: Healthy Chefs Share Their Secrets

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Dressed in a crisp white chef's jacket, her long brown hair pulled back in a casual ponytail, Deb Howard stands before a group of cooking students in the gleaming new stainless steel demonstration kitchen at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health.
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?If a Twinkie were a man, he would not be one that I would expect to have a long-term, deep, or meaningful relationship with,? declares the executive chef of the Stockbridge, Massachusetts, retreat. ?A Twinkie is basically a one-night stand?and not a very good one at that. For me, a creamy squash soup or a warm bowl of lentil and chicken stew?now that?s a relationship I can get behind.?
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Notions of healthy eating have come a long way since the 1970s, when spa cuisine equaled bland, boring, rabbit food. Today?s buzzwords, however, include whole foods, organic, local, seasonal?and, as Howard explains, yummy.
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?Yummy means that not only does my tongue say yum, but my entire body says, ?Yes, this is good,?? she says. ?If I enjoy eating something, and then an hour later I feel that I am still getting energy from that food and that my body is digesting it well, that food qualifi es as yummy. If our food isn?t giving us energy?real, long-term, solid energy, then it?s not yummy. It?s ?Twinkie.??
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Fortunately, our region provides myriad opportunities to learn healthy cooking techniques, whether one wants simply to make the most of the bounty from area farmers? markets (including locally produced artisan cheeses and sustainably raised meats) or if one is facing a serious medical condition, such as diabetes or cancer, which might benefi t from a macrobiotic approach.
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Kripalu, for instance, offers natural-foods cookery classes weekly, usually on Tuesday evenings, as part of its ?Retreat and Renewal? program. Cooking and nutrition classes are also included in various lifestyle programs dedicated to health and vitality, fi tness, and weight loss. Weekend and weeklong workshops cover raw food and super-food nutrition, detox and purifi cation fasting, and vegetarian cooking?even sushi as spiritual practice.
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Michael Marcus, owner and head sushi chef of the acclaimed Bizen Sushi Bar & Japanese Restaurant in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, teaches such a course, in which he shares the secret to making perfect sushi rice and initiates students into the philosophy and discipline of the Zen Buddhism-based culinary art.
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?There is always more than just the ingredients on your cutting board going into the food you prepare,? Howard explains. ?Your energy, your thoughts, feelings, and emotions are there, too. Cooking is an opportunity to allow energy to fl ow from your heart into your hands and to your food. This is why I say you can never truly be healthy if you do not cook for yourself sometimes.?
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Olaf Fischer, executive director of the Kushi Institute in Becket, Massachusetts, follows similar principles. ?Macrobiotics isn?t just about miso soup and brown rice anymore,? he says.
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Indeed, a recent holistic weekend retreat at this thirty-one-year-old macrobiotics education center featured cooking classes led by Debora Wright that included recipes for rich-tasting dishes such as sole with lemon white sauce (made creamy with soft organic tofu) and a rustic apple tart infused with flaxseed goodness and sweetened with a touch of maple syrup and apricot jam.
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The Kushi Institute demonstration kitchen is located deep in the woods in a dilapidated stone mansion that served as a hunting lodge a hundred years ago. The original leaded glass windows and dark wood beams remain intact, as does a deer-antler chandelier hanging over the dining table?ironic since fi sh is the only non-plant protein allowed in a macrobiotic diet.
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Eating seasonal foods, Wright says, is intrinsic to good health. ?As the seasons are constantly and quietly changing around us, our bodies are also sensing and responding to the changes that come with various climate conditions that are shifting. We naturally make choices in how we cook in response to our relationship to these environmental infl uences.?
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It makes sense to honor one?s cravings for light and watery raw fruits and vegetables during the hot summer months and to opt for the warming, deep nourishment that comes from slowcooked foods, like stews, in wintertime. ?Our overall energy level in the body, physical stamina, and balanced health are supported and nourished by being aware of the seasonal, daily, and meal-to-meal choices we make,? Wright concludes.
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The Kushi Store on campus, open to the public and via mail order, is stocked with macrobiotic staples, such as dried Japanese sea vegetables, pickled plums, miso (fermented soybean paste), brown rice syrup, hemp milk, and Samurai-sword-quality knives. Vegan cuisine, which eschews meat of any kind, as well as eggs, dairy products, and processed foods that contain animal derivatives such as gelatin and honey, is another health-conscious option.
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Nutritional therapist Sheryl Meyer of Naturalis Remedies and Therapies in Williamstown, Massachusetts, teaches such cooking classes, focused around a diet that ?works gently to clear toxicity through spices, veggies, and grains.? Class topics include creating diets for those with health issues, such as gluten intolerance or highblood pressure; stocking one?s kitchen with necessary basics; and cooking healthy and festive meals for family and friends.
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On the other end of the healthy nutrition philosophy spectrum is chemist and chef MaryBeth Merritt, who founded the Living Learning Collaborative at Four Winds Farm in Great Barrington a few years ago. This nonprofi t educational group serves as the Berkshire County chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation, a national research and activist organization dedicated to ?wise traditions in food, farming, and the healing arts.?
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The foundation?s mission is based upon the work of Weston A. Price, a Cleveland dentist who traveled to isolated parts of the globe in the 1930s to study the health of populations untouched by Western civilization. He believed that inhabitants of non-industrialized countries generally enjoyed good health as a result of diets that contained plenty of meat and lacked processed foods. Unlike vegans, his disciples embrace the consumption of pasture-fed animals, wild fish, and full-fat, ideally raw-milk products.
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?One of the things we are really interested in is food: growing it, cooking it, eating it, and its potential for contributing to a sustainable way of life economically, socially, and in health,? Merritt says. The group meets on a monthly basis for classes on topics such as making kombucha (a naturally fermented health drink), yogurt and kefi r, and homeopathic tinctures; lacto-fermenting vegetables; sourcing and preparing wild edibles; types of detoxifying herbs; baking with sourdough; soaking and sprouting grains, seeds, nuts, and beans; and raising chickens.
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?We talk about nutrition, share recipes, and discuss challenges in the kitchen and the garden,? Merritt says of the free gatherings. ?Most often we have a potluck dinner afterward, using whole foods that we prepare in traditional ways.?
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Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Massachusetts, takes a different approach. Here, spa-goers can get their blood tested for nutrient defi ciencies and insulin resistance and then consult with a team that includes a holistic-minded doctor, a behavioral therapist, a nutritionist, and cooking teachers to address their personal-health issues. There are daily ?Lunch and Learn? sessions in the demonstration kitchen, during which a chef talks his way through the preparation of the meal as if on a television cooking show, while students sample creations from fl ower-adorned dining tables. And daily handson cooking classes cover topics ranging from how to cook and select fish (wild or organic farm-raised seafood is best) to bread-baking to fast and simple techniques for preparing nourishing foods at home.
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Fortunately, access to education about healthy cooking is not limited to those with signifi cant disposable incomes. The Nutrition Center in Great Barrington, affi liated with Community Health Programs Nutrition Services and Fairview Hospital, provides individual nutrition counseling to address medical conditions such as diabetes, food allergies, and obesity, and offers culinary classes for both children and adults. The cost of participating in many of its programs is covered by health insurance or underwritten by grants. The center?s innovative approach aims to make dietary changes achievable and realistic within different cultures, personal preferences, and household budgets.
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Programs at the center involve a garden in which participants learn how to grow the foods they eat, multicultural dinners, a lively farmers? market with on-site cooking demonstrations that prepare the foods for sale each week, and A-Z (Apples to Zucchini), a plan through which low-income families receive subsidized local produce each week during peak season.
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Culinary coach and cookbook author Amy Cotler of West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, also helps people make the most of Berkshire bounty. She works with clients in their own homes, tailoring sessions to individual needs. Chris Johnson of Tyringham, Massachusetts, hired Cotler for a dozen coaching sessions as a gift for his wife, Tracy.
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?I was interested in learning knife skills and techniques for how to best use our Indian Line Farm CSA share,? Tracy says, ?and I wanted to become more comfortable cooking fi sh without rendering it inedible.? Cotler took her on a shopping expedition to Other Brother Darryl?s fish market in Otis, Massachusetts; when they returned home, she showed Tracy how to make parchment pouches in which to cook the fish with different spice combinations?Asian, Italian, Mexican. They then baked the fish and tasted each to see which flavorings she liked best. (The winner was a Greek medley of lemon slices, olive oil, and fresh thyme.)
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The first step to wellness, however, is taken outside of the kitchen: understanding how food fuels the human body. ?We get busy and keep going with caffeine and sugar, robbing ourselves of authentic vitality,? says Alison Shore Gaines, who leads mindful eating seminars and organic juice purification retreats at Kripalu and from her home in Lenox. ?Every time we eat is a chance to nourish ourselves, to eat as if we matter, to change the way we live from the inside out.? (MAR/APR 2009)



Gina Hyams is a contributing editor to Berkshire Living.
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THE?GOODS
Alison Shore Gaines
Lenox, Mass.

www.sacrednourishment.com

Canyon Ranch
165 Kemble St.
Lenox, Mass.
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www.canyonranch.com

Fresh & Company
Amy Cotler
139 West Center Rd.
West Stockbridge, Mass.

www.freshcotler.com

Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health
57 Interlaken Rd.
Stockbridge, Mass.
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www.kripalu.org

Kushi Institute
198 Leland Rd.
Becket, Mass.
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www.kushiinstitute.org

The Living Learning Collaborative Four Winds Farm
110 Christian Hill Rd.
Great Barrington, Mass.

www.fourwindsgreatbarrington.org

Naturalis Remedies & Therapies
Sheryl Meyer
610 Main St.
Williamstown, Mass.

The Nutrition Center
94 West Ave.
Great Barrington, Mass.

www.nutrition94west.org
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RECIPES

Kripalu Lentil and Chicken Stew
?Here in the Berkshires, the wind begins to blow in some really cold nights,? says Kripalu executive chef Deb Howard. ?What to do? Make stew. This is one of my favorite stews; the lentils and flavors in this dish will warm your whole body and give you the strength needed to chop wood and carry water, as the saying goes. Serve this over a quinoa pilaf with a side salad topped with yogurt dressing.?
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Chicken provides Vitamin B12 and zinc; lentils are a good source of folate, calcium, and magnesium.

Serves 4

Thighs, legs, and wings of one organic chicken
1 cup French lentils
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 small onion (or leek), diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 small carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
? cup white or red cooking wine
1 tablespoon zahatar (Middle Eastern spice blend)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon capers
3 cups water or stock
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Saut? onion (or leek), celery, and carrots in the grapeseed oil over medium heat until softened. Add garlic and tomato paste and saut? for a few minutes; then add chicken, zahatar, and 1 teaspoon salt. Saut? for a few minutes longer, until the mixture begins to stick to the bottom of the pan. Splash wine into the pan to deglaze, scraping up browned bits. Add lentils, water (or stock), and the capers. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and lentils are soft. Adjust seasoning, adding the remaining salt, to taste. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil before serving.

This recipe also works well in a slow cooker or in a clay pot in the oven: saut? ingredients as above (in the clay pot, if suitable for use on the stovetop); then place dish in oven for the cooking time, though cooking at a low temperature (around 250 degrees) for several hours yields ideal flavor?the chicken will fall off the bones, so be sure to remove the bones before serving.

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Kushi Institute Winter Vegetable Stew
?This hearty stew combines an array of healthy vegetables, whole-wheat noodles, and miso,? says Kushi Institute instructor Mirea Ellis. ?To maximize health benefits, use organic vegetables [though some may sound unfamiliar, most are available at area health food stores and even some grocery stores] and noodles, and unpasteurized, traditionally processed miso, which aids digestion and strengthens the immune system, as it provides an abundance of beneficial microorganisms [probiotics] and enzymes.?

Serves 6

4 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in water for half an hour
3-inch piece of kombu sea vegetable
2 large carrots, cut into large, angled pieces
? large daikon radish, cut into large, angled pieces
2 medium burdock roots, cut into one-inch, angled pieces
1 small butternut squash, cut into one-inch chunks
4 napa cabbage leaves, roughly chopped
2 collard leaves, roughly chopped
7 or 8 ounces whole-wheat udon noodles, precooked al dente
4 tablespoons mugi (barley) miso
2 scallions thinly sliced on a diagonal, for garnish
Water

Remove the hard ends of the shiitake mushroom stems and discard. Slice each mushroom in half along the stem. Place kombu, shiitake, carrots, daikon, burdock, and squash in a large pot. Pour water over vegetables until just covered. Bring to a boil, then lower the flame, cover, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, until vegetables are soft. Add the cooked noodles, napa cabbage, and collard leaves, cover, and cook for 4 minutes.
Put the miso in a small bowl and dilute with some of the stew broth, then add to the stew and mix gently, keeping vegetables intact. Simmer for 3 minutes. Serve sprinkled with sliced scallions. (You may substitute freshly grated ginger for the scallions, or add 1? cups of organic, precooked chickpeas or kidney beans with the noodles and greens.)

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