Cooking with Chef AJ

INSANE german chocolate cake made with dates and no flour or sugar or processed ingredients.

I just took a cooking class on Sunday that was kinda life-changing.  Taught by Chef AJ, a devout Vegan, entertaining speaker and a pleasure to listen to.  She sang and danced and did headstands throughout the course of the day, stopping here and there to blend up a green smoothie with kale and banana or give a lecture on what really happens at a dairy farm.  

I have read Skinny Bitch and  followed Alicia Silverstone's blog and read her book which I love.  So I know a thing or two about slaughterhouses, making veal, dairy farms and the like.  It breaks my heart every time I'm reminded of what happens to animals and yet I keep going back to an animal protein diet.  I think I've come far though.  I DO NOT purchase any meat unless it is Organic, and I know the background on the farm it was raised on.  I have significantly cut down my animal protein intake to around 4x/week, mostly fish, and am happy substituting a plant-based smoothie for my typical egg white omelette breakfast.  

I think any change is good and baby steps are key.  If you swear everything off you come back full force with mad cravings.  My friend and Spiritual healer, Nadia, told me as soon as we decide we are going to take something out of our diet that we enjoy, the body rebells, needing that thing like an addiction, and you end up overcompensating with other things.  I know on my cleanse that I ate a LOT of sweet potatoes, avocado and bananas because I felt deprived and bummed I couldn't eat chocolate and cheese.

But back to Chef AJ.  She is an energetic, passionate soul.  I admire anyone who:

1. Can go completely vegan based on their animal rights views

2. Can sing and dance for a room of strangers their own lyrics (about food nonetheless)

3. Can leave you thinking hard about your choices and how you might change your life for the better.

She taught us how to make yummy kale salad instead of buying it for $6 at Whole Foods, educated us on high powered blenders, juicers and pressure cookers and  how bananas and dates are all you really need for a sweet fix.  AND good quality cocoa powder.  If you're not addicted to it.  Check it out.  I'm definitely going to start making some new choices this week.

My Library

I have a lot of cookbooks.  Some I keep going back to again and again.  Some that are stained with past cookery and pages are glued together with grease from having the book open, burner-side while testing of recipes.  They are all loved, and here are my faves.


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This book is just beautiful to look at.  I had it on my coffee table for several years.  The pictures are gorgeous.  I bought it when I visited  his restaurant, 15 in London about 6 years ago.  The salad with mint, peas, bacon, fava beans and pecorino is indescribable.




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This is a great read because it features all here awesome englishness but speedy.


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My first love.  This book and the shows that followed it inspired me to lose my fear in the kitchen. AND her watermelon daiquiri is quite possibly the best summer drink ever.


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Bethenny is brilliant and any woman can relate to the content of these books.  I have made the recipes again and again as well.  They are very trustworthy, healthy and they actually taste divine.  I make the banana oatmeal cookies and the stuffed mushrooms constantly.

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This book is informative without being pushy and really interesting.  It made me go vegan for a month and definitely be way more conscious about my choices.  I love the peanut butter cups and the rice crispy treats.  You will never miss the high fructose corn syrup.

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Another beauty.  The pictures are so inviting, you find yourself in Sprout Markets immediately, looking for coconut flour and powdered soy milk to replicate those enticing cupcakes. AND Erin Mckenna and her sisters are just darling.  Those uniforms?  I mean please.  I want to eat them.

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Interesting lifestyle and a super hilarious stpry told by Jessica Porter.  I don't fully buy in to this way of life but I like reading about alternative eating and lifestyles and I definitely learned a few lessons along the way.  Her "Really Yummy Oat Bars" fit right into my gluten-free, dairy-free diet, minus the flour, plus the Bob's Red Mill GF baking powder.  A nice read for people on my wacky diet who want to find some interesting alternatives.


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I'm loving the easy, no-stress recipes in this book.  I found myself with a folder bursting full of tear-outs from the magazine and figured its time to actually purchase the book.  It looks much prettier in my library.  Check out the ice cream sandwich dessert recipe.  Its brills.

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I know there has been lots of talk about the book preceding this and its definitely an eye-opening read.  There are some great staple recipes in here for stir-fry's and salads and probably my fave granola recipe in the world; not too much sugar, lots of heart-healthy ingredients.  A fun alternative-lifestyle read if you ask me.

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Everything always goes back to Nigella but I can't deny it!  I feel like she was the teacher who opened my eyes to the culinary world.  There are so many goodies and pretty pictures in here I find myself revisiting this one again and again.  I have made her asian-style ribs 101 times and the grilled eggplant with feta, mint and chilli is a no brainer app.

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Here it is again and its worth a second mention.  I love her stories, the way she writes, her attitude towards food and how she ate it throughout her modeling career with wild abandon.  This book is sitting in my kitchen, packed with post it notes marking every recipe I want to try this week.

What are your favorite cookbooks?