About Me

My childhood years consisted of a ‘meat-based’ diet. I was born and raised in Jamaica by Indian parents who enjoyed eating tandoori chicken, beef vindaloo, escovitch fish, ackee and salt fish, and the occasional cow cod soup (you should Google that one!). One of my most remembered moments growing up was Hurricane Gilbert, a 185 miles-per-hour storm that wiped out much of the island. After the hurricane, the only food my family had to eat for two weeks was canned corned beef.

Having come from a culture that prizes meat, transitioning to a vegan diet wasn’t natural or easy for me. I had to relearn what food meant to me. I also had to learn how to make plants taste delicious. I’ve grown to love eating plants in their natural state and appreciate their simplicity and flavor, but this wasn’t always the case. At the start of my journey, I needed to embellish them with sweet and salty sauces, deep-fried breadcrumbs, melted cheese…anything that would drown out their natural flavor.

It doesn’t take long to feel the health benefits from eating more plants. In fact, for me, it was almost instantaneous. I noticed that I had much more energy almost right away. Sprinting after three kids under the age of three and a half started feeling like a walk in the park!
Plus, my bloodwork is super clean! My cholesterol levels are some of the lowest my doctor has seen in his practice.

I went to a vegetarian culinary school to learn how to make plants taste delicious. It was there that I learned to love vegetables without embellishment. But not for the reasons you might think. The school’s recipes contained so much salt and sugar that after an entire day of eating like that, I would feel sick. I started to crave just plain vegetables.

But plain vegetables would never go down well with three young kids. And so, I experimented to find an in-between. This is how I came to create recipes that make plants taste delicious where you can enjoy them and at the same time consume a healthful meal. Plus, with three kids to raise (and all their laundry), my recipes also had to be practical, easy, and affordable.