Enliven your meals with food that is crafted with care for your well-being and delight.
I will bring to your table delicious and energetically vibrant food that draws from a wide range of ethnic cuisines, adapted to your dietary needs be it anything from paleo to vegan, raw or allergy-specific. My cooking methods and recipes are attuned to the seasons, using ingredients that are whole, organic, local and pastured-raised whenever possible.
Drawing on my knowledge of the healing properties of herbs, spices, vegetables and fruit, I can help you meet your health goals and challenges with tasty, nutrient dense and flavorful meals.
I was born in Malaysia in a vibrant multi-ethnic culinary environment where food was central to social and family gatherings, festivals and rituals. Weaned on a diet that was rich in flavors and variety in this "Cradle of Spices", my subsequent travels around the world became explorations of flavor, cooking methods and eating styles.
My approach to food is informed by the study of Ayurveda, Macrobiotics, the Chinese 5-phase theory and the latest advances in nutritional science, all of which deepened my understanding of the relationship between food and the body as it unfolds in time.
As a chef, I meld the aesthetics and science of food into eating experiences that are sensual and healthful.
I am a graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts, and taught in their Chefs’ Training Program.
~ANNIE KUNJAPPY
Philosophy
Humans have explored the relationship between the world around us and our internal processes for millennia. Food is a direct and daily communion we have with our environment- we eat our world. Our well-being and our ailments are often reflections of our adaptation to our environment, our histories, and the organisms with whom we cohabit, and much of this is mediated through our gut, a major gateway for materials passing between our external and internal worlds.
Culinary practices over time and over cultures have variously made the kitchen a theater and an apothecary, yielding gems of aesthetic and health-supportive innovation and discovery. I believe that we can draw from the wealth of information accumulated by the human collective to understand and enliven the profound event that is a meal.
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"The first thing that hits me when I see Annie's meals is how colorful, healthy and appetizing they look, and how delicious they smell. Then the taste--what a feast for the palate, so scrumptious and fresh. I always feel satiated yet light and energetic afterwards, and my digestive system is left purring happily."
/ Jacqui A. /
Experience
I have been a chef since 2005 helping food conscious clients who have busy schedules maintain a healthy lifestyle, as well as those who require specialized diets to meet health challenges such as auto-immune disorders, recovery from cancer treatments, pre- or post natal difficulties, celiac or Lyme disease.
When catering a group event, I draw from my experience in collaborative theater-making to create a total experience that is sensual and aesthetically stimulating.
I enjoy teaching cooking classes to adults and children that culminate in a co-created meal, an experience that is fun, empowering and community-building for participants. I have found great satisfaction in sharing my knowledge of food and healing through teaching Ayurvedic cooking at yoga teachers' training retreats, as well as offering dietary consultations that equip clients to aid their own healing process through the daily practice of feeding oneself.