ABOUT GARDEN TO GOURMET
Our Chef Neil Barnett is a raw food chef, teacher and founder of Garden to Gourmet. He trained at Matthew Kenney Culinary in Los Angeles, taking the Introduction to Raw Cuisine and the Advanced Raw Cuisine courses. Knife skills, flavour balancing, recipe testing, plating and presentation skills were among the many techniques that Neil was exposed to, taking his understanding and preparation of raw food to a whole new level. (Matthew Kenney Culinary is recognised by Food & Wine magazine as, one of the best cooking classes in the world). http://www.matthewkenneycuisine.com Food For Living We believe that natural is best, that's why we only prepare fresh, raw, organic, plant-based food from vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, leafy greens, sprouted seeds, sea vegetables (seaweeds) and natural fats and that they retain as much of their goodness as possible by not being cooked. We want to share our culinary skills so others can enjoy making more raw, plant-based food for themselves and increase the amount of this food in their diets. We believe that food is central to our home life and that a dish shared is a delight doubled, which is why we create unique food experiences for you to enjoy with family & friends at home. The Ultimate Dining In Experience Since graduating from the Advanced Raw Cuisine program at Matthew Kenney, Neil has brought together his raw culinary skills and passion for teaching to create an exciting range of raw food, home dining experiences, entitled LOCATE, where from the comfort of your own home, Neil creates for you and your guests a unique, raw food experience with tastes, flavours and textures that will astound you. Choose from lunch, high tea or dinner and just sit back and enjoy! Raw Foods We consider the major raw food groups to be: Vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, leafy greens, sprouted seeds, sea vegetables (seaweeds) and natural fats. Please note that although many of our delicious dishes do not contain nuts, anyone with severe nut allergies should not consume any of our items. |
I can't think of anything better than having a group of friends round for dinner, lunch or tea and enjoying beautiful looking and tasting food that's also really healthy, nutritious and totally unique. Simply Beautiful Food
Neil’s passion in preparing raw, plant-based food, started not long after he and his wife moved to Sydney in 2008. They began a journey of discovery that took them into a whole new world of delicious food that is gorgeous to look at, fresh, organic and packed with goodness. Neil explains, "My first exposure to raw food was about 15 years ago, when my wife and I went to friends for dinner. They had made a raw pizza. The base was made from buckwheat and dehydrated, not cooked in an oven. The tomato sauce and all the toppings were fresh, raw, vegetables. It was an amazing experience. Everything tasted so vibrant and the flavours were stunning. Several years later when we came to live in Sydney, my wife started looking at alternative, healthy food options and had soon re-discovered raw food. We looked at web sites, books, went to classes, purchased equipment and gradually built up a pretty good catalogue of recipes and techniques. Making raw food for us was like a cross between a science experiment and an art project. The ingredients we were exposed to: acai berries, goji berries, lucuma, maca, coconut oil, agave (to name a few) were new to us back then. We began introducing our friends to the things we were making. They all thought we were crazy when they saw us drinking green smoothies or making zucchini noodles. But they always loved the tastes and were surprised at how full they felt after eating only small amounts of the delicious, nutrient dense food." How To Get Our Delicious Food Home Dining Experiences (Locate): Give us a call to discuss your requirements and then we'll bring the food to you. Fabulous Food Workshops: Sign up and then attend at our Avalon kitchen. There will be plenty of sampling going on! Made to Order Products: Please collect from our Avalon kitchen. |
Food Groups and Raw Food
Carbohydrates: provide energy to the body. Fruits are a very good source of carbohydrates.
Raw food replaces cooked complex carbohydrates with raw, simple carbohydrates from fruit.
Proteins: are essential amino acids which need to be eaten in food. Most plant foods contain some protein but no individual plant contains complete protein (all nine essential amino acids). It is important to combine various plants to provide all the amino acids which the body then combines to complete proteins. Research suggests that the body actually prefers to receive protein in incomplete form (as individual amino acids) so that it can combine them itself.
Fat: is an important part of a healthy diet. However, the body does not necessarily need fatty foods in order to store body fat. All unprocessed, fresh fruits and vegetables contain a percentage of fat. A natural diet, eaten in reasonable amounts of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds and especially avocado, provides essential fatty acids in sufficient quantities. The fruit highest in fat is the avocado and the nut highest in fat is the macadamia.
Vitamins: most vitamins are significantly depleted in the cooking process. Raw fruit, vegetables and nuts can provide all the vitamins needed for healthy body function. Vitamin B12, which is synthesised by colon bacteria, may become deficient in a purely vegan diet and it may be advisable to take B12 supplements.
Minerals: interact with vitamins and enzymes and are essential to the functioning of the body. Inorganic minerals exist in soil and water. Organic minerals exist in plants and animals. Only plants can transform inorganic minerals into organic minerals by means of photosynthesis. Animals must eat plants or plant-eating animals to obtain their organic minerals. The six most important minerals, calcium, phosphorous, iodine, iron, zinc and magnesium are abundantly contained in fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts and sprouts.
(Stefan Mager: Raw Food Guide)
Carbohydrates: provide energy to the body. Fruits are a very good source of carbohydrates.
Raw food replaces cooked complex carbohydrates with raw, simple carbohydrates from fruit.
Proteins: are essential amino acids which need to be eaten in food. Most plant foods contain some protein but no individual plant contains complete protein (all nine essential amino acids). It is important to combine various plants to provide all the amino acids which the body then combines to complete proteins. Research suggests that the body actually prefers to receive protein in incomplete form (as individual amino acids) so that it can combine them itself.
Fat: is an important part of a healthy diet. However, the body does not necessarily need fatty foods in order to store body fat. All unprocessed, fresh fruits and vegetables contain a percentage of fat. A natural diet, eaten in reasonable amounts of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds and especially avocado, provides essential fatty acids in sufficient quantities. The fruit highest in fat is the avocado and the nut highest in fat is the macadamia.
Vitamins: most vitamins are significantly depleted in the cooking process. Raw fruit, vegetables and nuts can provide all the vitamins needed for healthy body function. Vitamin B12, which is synthesised by colon bacteria, may become deficient in a purely vegan diet and it may be advisable to take B12 supplements.
Minerals: interact with vitamins and enzymes and are essential to the functioning of the body. Inorganic minerals exist in soil and water. Organic minerals exist in plants and animals. Only plants can transform inorganic minerals into organic minerals by means of photosynthesis. Animals must eat plants or plant-eating animals to obtain their organic minerals. The six most important minerals, calcium, phosphorous, iodine, iron, zinc and magnesium are abundantly contained in fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts and sprouts.
(Stefan Mager: Raw Food Guide)