Retreat Offerings: A Food-related Retreat Possibility.

During a coaching session yesterday, a beloved client casually mentioned that she is “bad at cooking” and has a “terrible relationship with food.” As though this is something permanent, unchangeable … a life sentence.

As this revelation came at the end of our session, I had no time for questions about what shaped her beliefs.

My guess is that she comes from a family of reluctant or incompetent cooks, and that perhaps her own attempts at cooking had been met with scorn. In any case, for now, she seems to have given up.

Except for this tiny spark. Feeling run down, she mentioned that she was drawn to buy a bunch of fresh ginger and was contemplating tea. Her plan – apparently conceived from her intuition – was to peel and grate the ginger and then to boil it in water. Would that work, she wondered?

Yes! This is how ginger tea is made. Bring diced or grated ginger to a boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 20 minutes, strain it, and voilà: ginger tea.

She also mentioned that she was drawn to buying beetroot but didn’t know how to cook it. A brief but lively discussion ensued, in which I gave her the trick: cook the beets first and THEN remove their skins. Before cooking, beets would have to be peeled – a tedious and inefficient process. After cooking, the skins slip right off in a most delightfully easy and fun way.

What impresses me about her choices is that these foods are perfect for her right now. Ginger tea is a suitable remedy for several of her current discomforts. And beets are perfect for moving into cold weather. Even though she views herself as incompetent regarding food, her intuitive choices are spot-on.

I want to encourage that kind of intuition for her and for all my beloveds who could use a kitchen upgrade.

When I showed my original retreat invitation to my niece April, who owns the guest house where retreats will take place, she had one criticism: I needed to say more about the food. At the time, I wasn’t ready.

But this past Saturday I invited one of her current tenants, a 25-year-old man, to dinner after I realized he was alone for the weekend. I had cooked vegetables to eat during the week:

*sweet potatoes (roasted in their skins until mushy, to enjoy with butter or tahini and sprinkled with pecan pieces)

*asparagus (roasted with dill and salt, to be served with fresh lemon juice)

*mushrooms (coated with olive oil and briefly roasted)

*cherry tomatoes (roasted just until the skins begin to wrinkle)

*onions (chunks sprinkled with salt and oregano, roasted with a cover until soft, then uncovered until brown, OMG the flavor … )

*bok choy (sauteed with garlic in dark sesame oil, sprinkled with salt and pepper)

*sauerkraut (shredded cabbage, carrot, and ginger mixed with salt and caraway seeds and fermented for a week)

He was enraptured by the food. Wanted to know how I made everything. Revealed that someday, when he has saved enough from his surveying job, he wants to open a gourmet sandwich shop and serve veggies like these as sides. Yessssss!!!!

April is right. Over time I have learned to make some very delicious food. And as I don’t like to go to a lot of trouble, the food I make is really, really simple to prepare. I need to share this kitchen witchery with folks.

So … I am now feeling inspired to help people like my client who thinks she can’t cook to connect more deeply with her intuition and to begin to enjoy playing around with food.

Is this you as well, perhaps? Or your daughter, your sister, your friend?

I’m thinking sometime this spring or early summer for a food-focused retreat. Tell me when is a good time for you to come to Texas for a few days and we’ll make this happen.