Saving the world one bite at a time!

"You'll know you're on the right path when things just start falling into place."  That's what my wise friend Randy told me when I first started on this journey to cook and teach.  And she was so right.  All along the way doors have opened for me and have helped me to build this nice little business cooking for families, teaching cooking classes and writing this blog.  And opportunites keep presenting themselves....

Last summer a lovely woman named Karen Pavone came to one of my cooking classes.  She sported a big, beautiful camera when she walked through the door.  I'm used to people sporting big, beautiful bottles of wine when they come to a class, but a professional camera is rare.  She asked if I minded her taking pictures because she was working on a blog for The Novato Patch about the farm to table experience.  Although I wish I had spent a little more time on my hair that day, I said that I would love for her to take pictures and write about my classes.  Turns out Novato Patch was interested in Karen, but not Cooking by the Bay because I was based in San Rafael and not Novato.  But now Karen has launched another great blog and finally was able to share her article about my cooking classes.

Her blog post sparked a meeting between me and Lisa Marvier, owner of Farm Girl Nursery.  Lisa has created a wonderful farm & nursery on her one and a half acre property off Indian Valley Road in Novato.  Covered with gorgeous produce, seedlings, flowers, eggs, honey... there are even chickens, two pigs that think they're dogs (they come running when Lisa calls them by name), and horses.  She has created a little store, too, filled with seeds, books, tools and all the things get you going in your own gardening experience....

It is nothing if not inspiring....I spent an hour there and didn't want to leave. I'm not a jealous girl by nature, but I was so jealous of this beautiful oasis that Lisa has created....

After a delicious tour of the property, we talked about our shared desire to teach people how easy it is to eat better, to feed the soul as well as the body, and most importantly about our desire that kids today would learn that real, whole foods are fun to grow and can be just as satisfying, if not more so, than the processed foods so many of them have grown up eating.

Together we hope to create kids' camps this summer where children can come and spend "a day on the farm," pet the farm animals,, take a ride on the zip line, pick produce, create dishes that we'll cook together and settle down for a delicious picnic lunch on the sunny lawn.  Best of all, Lisa plans to send each child home with the recipes and fresh produce so they can recreate their dishes at home for their parents. 

We left each other that day with a hug and a wish to "change the world, one bite at a time."  If you're interested in Farm Girl Nursery's kids' camps, contact me at Suzanne@CookingbytheBay.com.