Testimonials

The layout of this course is great! I loved how it built upon itself and each topic was revisited numerous times but in new ways. I liked how traditional elements and H/S were highlighted and discussed for different cuisines but that we were...

I am grateful for what I have learned at The School of Natural Cookery. I acquired knife skills, in depth information on cooking methods, and the importance of whole foods and ingredients. I gained a broader perspective on the infinite creativity in the kitchen realm....

Through this course, I validated many of the skills I already had, I sharpened several others and attained several new ones. I learned how to understand Bean Cookery! I never cooked with beans, because I didn’t know How! I learned that grains are...

With Portugues as my home language, English as my second language, I  learned a new cooking language and how to use it to make dishes. In all professions you always have a book that will provide confidence and we love to have it...

I am extremely thankful with you and the school for the opportunities you have given. The Natural Chef Training not only taught me to cook the most delicious plant based foods, but also to trust myself more than ever.  I had never cooked...

This curriculum will be, and has already begun to shape a foundation of knowledge that I don’t think I can operate without anymore. I first came into this program with hopes of gaining a simple clarity of the cooking process. I can now...

Julianaa, I am reading now all your books and really enjoying them. I love the Amazing Grain book right now. Just the tenderness you have toward food. It’s so rare now. I’m just registering a sort of culture shock. As you know well,...

Throughout The Natural Chef training, the most significant gains were made in organization, efficiency, confidence and meal composition. Where I once struggled to sequence how I would prepare a meal, I am now able to chop vegetables while others are sealing, braise items...

I have learned so much that it is difficult to put it into words. I think that some of the elements of the course that stood out and changed my cooking the most was learning the order of which to add ingredients (especially...

I loved the culinary – differentiating between primary & supporting ingredients, and the cooking methods specific to working with each of the former. (& Exposure to culturally-specific applications & variations.) – Understanding ingredients from a functional standpoint — working with ratios/proportions & observation/senses...

This program has been life altering in ways that I haven’t fully figured out how to put into words. The growth that I have personally gone through in the last nine months has been exponential and life altering. The educational part of the...

Through The School of Natural Cookery I have learned not only how to improvise but also how to create from scratch-no recipes, no grocery runs-just with the ingredients that are in my kitchen in that moment. It’s such an important and useful tool...

As for the culinary side, I would like to state an example of what happened to me 3 weeks back . I am very fond of ramen and I had a chance to have a vegetarian ramen that time. I loved it and...

I’ve been cooking for myself, my family, and my friends for many years. However, I always felt like there was room to elevate my skills and knowledge. Over the past nine months I have learned so much. The following is a highlight, as...

The training has fundamentally changed the way in which I approach and relate with food and cooking. Besides instilling an ease and confidence when working in the kitchen, it has fostered a faith in the ability to create a satisfying and healthy meal...

This has been an amazing program for me. I’ve grown confidence, learned many new ways to cook and how to balance a meal, learned to make cookies and cake for the first time, dehydrate vegetables, make mochi, sprout! Wow! This is just the...

I have grown physically, spiritually and emotionally during my time here at the SNC. I can not remember connecting with my food before nor really felt an obvious connection with it before until I participated in this course. I have had a truly...

I learned to be a better cook, for sure. I learned to trust my innate intelligence a lot more during this program, as well. I faced quite a bit of resistance, physically, mentally, spiritually, and internally, pretty much from the moment I enrolled...

I’ve grown a lot as a chef throughout this class. I feel confident in my abilities to create dishes and design competent and complete meals. In this training I’ve learned how to design meals to fit individual needs and fit within parameters of...

From a culinary point of view, I became aware of different types of foods that I never heard about, learned the health benefits of different foods and how pairing them with other foods and using a specific cooking method may increase their health...

I learned so much! I FEEL inspired and excited, grateful for all I have learned. The techniques and creative abilities are so much greater. I loved the encouragement to think intuitively about the composition of dishes. Sally Christopher – Chef Diploma 2021

“What the Independent Study format has meant for me?” The Natural Cook training program has made cooking a creative experience for me. I love the process! I started the program in hopes of learning how to make simple, plant-based foods look and taste...

Feeling sad today. I have just submitted my glazed tofu.. Can’t believe it’s all coming to an end! It felt like it was just the other day in Portugal that you said we still have a long way to go. How time has...

I was looking for a way to integrate a plant-based diet with traditional gourmet techniques and modern nutrition. My mother taught French cooking and entertained regularly, so after leaving home and becoming a vegetarian/vegan, I wanted to capture the excitement of the flavors...

Here goes my little story for this course…. When I started this training, I knew how to make food by recipes only.  I was very interested in eating good foods, whole foods. I grew up on fast food and things that my parents...

The School of Natural Cookery is a very unique program. Instead of memorizing recipes or cracking eggs over and over until I can do it with one hand, we focused on breaking down food into Primary Elements and learning the methodology for cooking...

I was always interested to learn more about plant based cooking , especially when I heard that my employer wanted to move more towards plant based cooking in the next 10 years. After more than 30 years in this trade, I thought that...

Thanks a lot Ms. Julianaa for your generous and encouraging comments. I love every moment of learning at SNC.

When I began the study program, I knew how to cook using recipes.  I was okay in the kitchen, just not that creative or super comfortable.  I was attracted to the program because I wanted to improve my skills and liked the idea...

I just finished a week-long gig as a private chef that Maihaa hooked me up with. I am so thankful for The School of Natural Cookery!  There is no way I could have pulled it off without your theories. There were so many menu...

I’m touching base today to let you know that even though I haven’t been attending online classes, I’m thoroughly engaged and progressing well through the course materials. I’ve always been a very happy independent learner, and I’m enjoying  the learning materials very much...

I am still so excited about cooking since talking with you.  I have never really liked to cook even though I have studied it just to see if I could get interested, but that did not work. In just one conversation with you...

I feel like I’ve been in training pretty much my whole life, and thanks to you (thank you), I have the tools I’d need to nourish and grow a healthy child. –   Rebecca B., British Columbia

I had the very special pleasure in Julianaa’s studio weekend  at her lovely home in Oregon.  As a student in the Lifestyle training, I was still learning and trying to master the basic principles of cooking. Since it was my first experience in a...

Julianaa, your course has transformed how my ingredients are organized in the kitchen and what a difference this makes not only for inspiration, but I am actually starting to look forward to cooking, instead of usually viewing it as a chore. –  ...

I could watch your videos all day! I love you and your philosophy. – Lauren L., Colorado

I really have enjoyed the course. Particularly helpful to me were the desserts — learning about proportions and the use of thickeners. Very cool! In fact every time I make cookies, soup, pancakes, etc. now I’m really just thinking – ” What flavors...

Julianaa, your course has transformed how my ingredients are organized in the kitchen and what a difference this makes not only for inspiration, but I am actually starting to look forward to cooking, instead of usually viewing it as a chore. –  ...

I attended SNC in 2000 wanting to make a career change from the corporate world. Under Julianaa’s tutelage and caring wisdom I learned how to cook and engage in my own creative process. I became a successful personal chef for about 10 years...

I have to thank you for all that I learned as a student of your course. I have based my personal cooking style from the course and it has become my career and true passion. The school has been my inspiration and you...

The School of Natural Cookery online system is brilliant! I have been enrolled in the Lifestyle Course Complete since May. Coming in as a complete novice to cooking, this course was perfect for me to learn the language of cooking without recipes. I systematically...

First, I just wanted to say, THANK YOU again and again. My life is healthier, happier, energized, and already 9.5 lbs lighter(mostly vegan natural diet) since encountering you, Maia and your School of Natural Cookery. I am cooking way more than I used...

For much of my life I have carried an extra 25 pounds on my body. When I hit menopause it got worse and my ability to fend off weight gain with good exercise and limited eating became even more difficult. Over the last...

As an Integrative Physician, I believe it’s essential for health providers to not only the knowledge of nutrition, but the ability to connect with food in a holistic way. Often the concept of cooking brings to mind using recipes or standard cooking techniques....

Julianaa— I happened to see a Facebook notification about your birthday today, so first… Happy Birthday!  I hope your day is special and that the coming year is your best one ever (so far). I thought this would be a good time to...