I was born in 1979 in North London to a Greek Cypriot family I had a typically Greek
upbringing where food was the basis of every social event. Due to my background
I had a good foundation for a healthy diet. Fresh fruit and vegetables, pulses,
nuts and seeds were all incorporated into my daily food intake and all meals were
prepared with fresh ingredients from scratch.
In 2003 after graduating from the University of Surrey Roehampton with honours in
Psychology and Art for the Community and then working for some time, I embarked
on a journey of life, which included travelling around South East Asia. During which
I met some of the most influential people in my life and my eyes were opened to
a world away from fast-, fried- and other unhealthy foods.
For the first time in January 2004 I adopted a vegan diet and was even convinced
to try the raw food diet for 3 days. Being in Thailand I was able to feast on huge
salads which included water chestnuts, bamboo shoots sesame seeds, plus ate fresh
mangos, pineapple and watermelon for breakfast and drank fresh coconut water. The
list of wonderful, juicy and tasty exotic fruits and vegetables was endless. After
3 days of thinking about cooked food I found that I had no urgency to eat any and
I felt great. From that moment on I was even more inspired and curious, therefore
when I got home in March I started to research raw food diets, looking on the internet
and reading anything I could rest my eyes on. Eventually I decided to try it for
a week as a detox, however after that week I felt great and looked so good again
I had no desire to eat anything cooked, cooked food had no appeal whatsoever, even
less so then after the 3 days in Thailand. And so my journey into raw food began.
Since taking the first steps into raw food I have been fortunate enough to assist
raw-vegan Gourmet chef Chad Sarno at the Fresh Festival 2004 and 2005 and was lucky
enough to meet fellow rawfoodist Woody Harrelson.
I also worked as a volunteer in 2004 at both the Festival of Life and the Mind Body
and Spirit Exhibition and even ran a stall at the Food of Life festival in Hove,
2006.
Another life changing event, which has played an important factor in my personal
development, is spending six months in 2005 volunteering in Arta, Greece, where
I lived and worked on an organic farm learning the fundamentals in planting, growing
and harvesting fruits, vegetables, grains and pulses and living a completely Vegan
Organic lifestyle.
My experiences and passion for food have given me the creativity needed to adapt
many common recipes to suit different eating habit, be it vegan, raw or simply low
fat.
I love presenting family and friends with raw food delights and regardless of their
initial scepticism they always enjoy what I offer. I have even catered and hosted
a 100% raw food Christmas party impressing everybody, young and old, who traditionally
believed that meat and bread was the foundation for every meal!
I believe that food should not be a chore, it should be fun, and that if we take
care of what we put inside our body, the benefits will be evident from the outside
and our bodies will better take care of us later in life.
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