54 SPRING 2020 | WWW.SHAKER.LIFE
My family in India is actually quite amused because I was
never much of a cook. But when I first moved here, that’s what I
missed the most, those tastes and flavors of home. International
calls were quite expensive and there was no FaceTime, so I had
to learn from trial and error. Now, my kids like to help out in the
kitchen and my older one has no qualms about taking his Indian
food to school for lunch.
Did you
start
offering
cooking
classes
as an
extension
of your
nutrition
coaching?
It actually started as a result
of a fundraiser for the Onaway
PTO. They asked if anyone had
a special talent they could offer
for the silent auction. I was
already enrolled in the holistic
health program and was itching
to do something around that,
so I offered a private cooking
class for four people. I believe
the bid started at $50 and it
went for over $350. That’s when
I thought, “Maybe I can do
something more with this.”
Having other moms
supporting me was a huge help.
Shaker moms are a powerhouse,
the way they move and implement
things. They showed me that you can
be a stay-at-home mom and have a
successful side gig. That was very
empowering for me.
What are
the cooking
classes like?
What I offer is a fun and
interactive experience that
can be as light and easy as just
observing with a glass of wine,
or participatory. I come to your
home, bring all the ingredients,
provide hands-on instruction,
and leave behind a starter kit of
spices and recipes. It can be a one-time class or a series
of classes with different themes. I also did a fun class
for a book group that was reading a novel by Thrity
Umrigar and they wanted to learn about the Indian
street food mentioned in the book.
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