The Conscious Gourmet

Culinary Retreats for the Body, Mind and Soul

Founded by Diane Carlson, former Co-President, Director and Chef/Instructor at The Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts in New York City for 12 years, The Conscious Gourmet features unique culinary programs including:

	Health Supportive Cooking Retreats in vacation destinations featuring the Core Program in Health Supportive Cooking previously offered only in New York City at The Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health.
	Pick-A-Date Retreat. If your calendar doesn't match up with our retreat dates, Pick-A-Date for your own personal retreat in Santa Fe, NM.
	Diane will personally instruct and coach you, as you prepare delicious full meal health supportive menus, designed especially for you, utilizing the highest quality ingredients available. Along with daily hands-on cooking classes, you’ll discover the underlying Conscious Gourmet philosophy and how to apply its principles for creating craving–free, nutritious and delicious meals that support your personal goals. The one-on-one instruction and hands-on practice in a Pick-A-Date retreat will transform your life.
	Holiday Weekend Intensives. Cooking classes, lectures and fun all packed into the long weekend.
	Single Day and Weekend Classes in Culinary Arts and Theory in select locations.
	Integrated Health Coach Consultations and Individualized Wellness Programs with Diane Carlson.

The Conscious Gourmet Institute

The Conscious Gourmet Institute offers teacher training programs in a variety of formats designed to meet individual experience and skill levels.

The Culinary Classroom (CCP) - Three day teacher training program designed for the individual who already has training in nutrition and/or food preparation skills. This program focuses on how to organize what you already know plus the skills required for teaching effective, inspiring, professionally presented culinary classes.

The Culinary Instructor Training Program (CITP) - Seven day teacher training program in health-supportive cooking and theory and the skills required for teaching effective, inspiring, professionally presented culinary classes.

For individuals requiring an expanded learning version of the CITP, a four-month training program is offered, meeting one weekend per month.

Why a Conscious Gourmet?

A gourmet is a lover of good food, but all too often our daily food choices are based upon familiarity and availability, lack of time, convenience, and ease of preparation. Unaware of the effects of our food choices on our health and wellbeing, we often experience weight gain, mood swings, decreased energy and attention levels, and cravings for nutrition deficient food. We unconsciously create food sensitivities, accelerate the aging process and repeatedly make choices that contribute to numerous unhealthy and life diminishing conditions that can sabotage our best efforts to maintain a healthy diet.

The Conscious Gourmet teaches the relationship between our food choices and our physical, mental and emotional health. Our classes immerse participants in the hands-on preparation of health-supportive foods as well as an ever-expanding array of nutritional approaches to assist you in choosing foods that balance you.

If your goal is simply to eat more healthfully, or, to fine tune a diet you are presently following-- low carb, vegetarian, raw foods, whole foods or any other diet-- you'll learn how to consciously apply our intentional eating principles to achieve the highest level of nutrition, balance and satisfaction possible.

You'll learn new and exciting kitchen friendly recipes and culinary techniques, how to have more energy, think more clearly, look and feel better, eliminate cravings and maintain or lose weight—often a by-product of a healthier diet.

Food Philosophy

We use the highest quality foods available that sustain both the individual and the planet including:

Whole, fresh, natural, seasonal, REAL food—organic whenever possible, without the use of refined sugar, white flour and limited dairy (you won’t want to miss our wheat-and-dairy-free Chocolate Mousse Cake with Chocolate Fudge Frosting!)

Retreats are based on health-supportive food and may be vegan, vegetarian, mostly vegetarian including some fish, organic/grass fed animal protein. See individual retreat listings for the specific program content.

Who Attends Our Programs?

People of all ages and experience levels who have a spirit of adventure, love to eat and/or cook, and choose to do it healthfully—singles, couples, mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, sisters, groups of friends, you and me.

The Perfect Gift

Cooking retreats make a perfect gift — Birthdays, Mother's Day, Anniversaries, Father's Day, Christmas or Hanukah, Graduations—or, for no reason at all!

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