Hello and thank you for taking an interest in me and my work.
Growing up in Marin, California, my passion for cooking and good food was cultivated working alongside both my parents in our family restaurant, and has continued to be a lifelong study and creative expression. My Italian grandmother, who harvested from her garden based on the cycles of the moon, taught me that food is medicine and how to use vegetables, herbs, and spices for enjoyment and good health. For our family, the kitchen was where fun happened and we shared good food, social intimacy and sometimes sensual abandon.
My path to discovering the benefits of eating natural health foods started in grade school. Witnessing my father being given six months to live after a stage IV cancer diagnosis changed my life. He came home from the doctor and turning on a dime, changed his diet, mindset and lifestyle. He shocked his doctor when his cancer went into remission and he lived eight more years to see me graduate high school. I had a front row seat watching what a person eats and how they choose to think are some of the most powerful tools in their tool box. I witnessed his personal transformation with intentional use of altered states of consciousness and how this restored a meaningful life.
Twenty-five years ago I moved to Portland, Oregon, and married my husband Greg, who came with three children, Nic, Ben and Melia. Overnight, I became a full-time mom to a four, five and seven year old, and while they’re now thriving adults, being a mother is my greatest joy to date.
