The Conscious Gourmet offers a variety of retreats for the novice to skilled home cook who loves to eat and cook healthfully and has a spirit of adventure. You'll broaden your perspective, gain confidence in the kitchen, develop your palate, learn health-supportive skills and culinary techniques and how to use food as one of the tools to increase the quality of your life. Our retreats feature:

The Core Program: During my 11 years as Co-President, Director and Chef Instructor at The Natural Gourmet Cookery School/Institute for Food and Health in NYC, thousands of individuals like your self attended the Institute's Core Program—a foundation course teaching the principles of health-supportive cooking and theory. The Conscious Gourmet now offers this program in an adapted intensive retreat format in vacation destinations. See Core Program Content listed below.

Adventure Programs: These retreats highlight the best your vacation destination has to offer plus hands-on health-supportive meals prepared by the entire group under the guidance of a chef/instructor—a great way to experience your retreat site plus the opportunity to practice cooking in a relaxed, informal setting. See individual retreat listing for program content.

Personalized Programs : Retreats designed especially for you for groups of 4 or more in select locations, or in your own kitchen. Contact Diane at 203-966-3559 to create your own unique retreat.

Retreats may also include cooking classes with local chefs, travel excursions, massage, movement classes, fine dining at local restaurants, and much more!

See individual retreat listing for details.

Core Program Content

The following is the Core Program Curriculum and includes both cooking and theory as offered at the New York City Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health. The same topics are included in the retreat Intensive format. Retreat participants attending all sessions will receive a Certificate of Completion from the Institute for Food and Health.

How to Begin
Explore the vast variety of health-supportive foods including whole grains, beans, sea vegetables, condiments, oils and natural sweeteners; why we use them and how to gradually stock your pantry with these high quality staples. We’ll discuss the ABC’s of menu planning, and how to create nutritious balanced meals that leave you free of cravings. We’ll apply the principles by demonstrating a variety of cooking techniques to prepare a complete meal from soup to dessert so you can experience the satisfying results.

Knife Skills
Learning to use a sharp knife properly and safely is essential to good cooking. You’ll prepare your meals in half the time as you master both Japanese and French knife techniques for mincing, dicing, shredding and more! You’ll learn how to select and care for your knives as well as how to sharpen and hone your knives and your skills!

Mostly Vegetarian Cooking Techniques
Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter Menus

Enroll in each series—featuring recipes and cooking techniques for each season. Individual retreats list which season series is being offered with new recipes in each program.

Discover how easy it is to prepare foods that taste delicious and are good for you, as we focus on the basic techniques of mostly vegetarian cooking. You’ll learn how to prepare non-dairy cream soups, whole grain and pasta dishes, high protein beans, calcium rich greens, salads, dressings, sugar-and dairy-free desserts; and how to incorporate them into a balanced satisfying meal. We’ll also discuss how to select equipment, and timesaving tips for a lifetime of delicious eating and cooking. Each session consists of a complete meal (one meal includes fish) with ample tastings. Choose the format that best suits your schedule.

*Principles of Balance (Core Program Theory)
This series of lectures will introduce you to an entirely new way of thinking about food and illustrate how to use diet as one of the tools to improve the quality of your life. You’ll learn the principles underlying the school’s cooking classes, including:

• Criteria for healthful food selection
• Basic principles of nutrition
• The art of creating balanced meals
• The principles of opposites and how it relates to cravings
• Five-Phase Chinese Dietary Theory

You’ll understand how to avoid binges and cravings; increase your energy, cope better with stress, and generally improve your health. Reading: Food and Healing by Annemarie Colbin.

*Principles of Balance (Core Program Theory) may be included in other Conscious Gourmet programs. See individual retreat listings for program content.