Dazzling Dietitian: I Love Malibu!

This past week I attended a nutrition workshop in beautiful Malibu, CA. In the past, I have attended nutrition conferences with hundreds of people, typically getting lost in the crowd. This time, I attended a Field to Plate workshop, hosted by Amanda Archibald. This was a WONDERFUL conference. There were less than 20 of us and we were each able to speak with presenters one-on-one. I learned so much!

I flew in Tuesday afternoon, with just enough time to enjoy dinner with a fellow attendee. The next day the conference started. Getting to the Malibu House was a feat in itself. It was a beautiful drive on Pacific Coast Highway and traveling up the mountain. The difficult part was making sure my stomach was able to make it.

It was definitely worth the motion sickness- the view was beautiful! Here are a couple of pictures of the view and the wonderful house. We were told that the empty lot next door was Jeff Bridges!

View of Malibu Beach

View of the Malibu House

The conference taught me all about supplement use and benefits of whole foods. I never knew that soaking beans prior to cooking would not only speed up the cooking time, but also release many valuable vitamins and minerals that would otherwise not be readily taken up by my body. I will also definitely start incorporating more probiotics into my diet. While I try to avoid taking a lot of supplements, there are plenty of foods (ie yogurt) that will help with probiotics. Taking it everyday will help with your digestive system.

Lastly, food and cooking can be as simple as adding spices to your meal. I will definitely be purchasing The Flavor Bible, as recommended by Amanda, in order to learn how to add spices and variety to my cooking. Hopefully, I will produce both nutritious and tasty foods. I no longer will just be focusing on low fat and salt. Herbs and spices will add more flavor and health benefits than anything else! Check out the wonderful food from the conference.