It’s April and we are delighted to introduce our “Featured Retreat Chef of the Month”: Lexi’s Loving Spoonful (aka Alexis Sinclair) who shared with us what got her into cooking (already in action as a little chef in the featured photo). She gave us a great insight into her chef life and some top tips.
How did you get into cooking in the first place? Was it a family member, a passion for healthy food?
I have loved cooking for as long as I can remember, my favourite childhood game being ‘playing restaurants’, and I liked nothing more than reading a recipe book cover to cover! I was very lucky to travel a lot as a child, tasting foods from all over the world and trying all sorts of interesting flavours – I think this curiosity just kept growing. Seeing the happiness on people’s faces when you cook for them definitely inspired me too – food is such a beautiful way to share your love with others.
Do you have a favourite dish? If you could only cook & eat one dish for the rest of your life, what would it be? What makes it so special that you’d never get tired of it?
I don’t like choosing favourites – in anything! For me the joy is all about adapting and changing to suit the occasion, and variety is the spice of life. I absolutely love getting creative with menus that complement the event I’m cooking for – whether it’s red foods to nourish the root chakra on a grounding yoga retreat, or ingredients that support hormone health on a women’s wellness day. I love the chance to showcase all the amazing medicinal properties of food.
And a signature dish you love making on retreat?
Rather than a signature dish, I love to serve up all sorts of interesting and varied dishes that surprise guests – ingredients they have never tried before, or in ways they have never seen them used. It always makes me smile when people realise they have really enjoyed something they never thought they would!
What is your favourite cookbook and why?
I love The Yoga Kitchen – it follows ayurvedic principles with recipes to support each chakra, and has beautiful inspiring images. It always makes me feel calm reading it.
Do you have a favourite cuisine? Which country/region and why?
I really like the variety of all world foods, but Thai and Middle Eastern flavours probably excite me the most.
Do you have a top tip for chefs and/or foodies? An ingredient you can’t imagine being without, a tool or a method you love using? Or even something you avoid doing like the plague?
Avocado and silken tofu are my two favourite ingredients for amazingly creamy and delicious healthy vegan desserts.
And I can’t really go anywhere without the Victorinox knife I got from my partner for my 40th birthday.
As for a top tip when catering – write a plan, stick to it, and then just have total trust in your past self, present self and future self…That way everything flows without any second guessing or last-minute panics!
Oh, and music! I always play music and do a lot of singing while I cook. I truly believe that the more joyful you are while preparing food, the more joyful the food you serve will be. We’re all just made up of energy, and we have the power every day to choose positive energy… and what better way to get some of that than eating it!
Thank you Lex for your amazing answers!
Find Lexi’s Loving Spoonful here on our directory: Lexi’s Loving Spoonful – RetreatChef.co.uk and check out the amazing reviews by her clients.
