Today we’d like to introduce you to Angelique Santana.
Angelique, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I self-published my first cookbook in August 2018.
It is no accident that I ended up here as a plant-based personal chef. I have always been passionate about food and fitness. During high school, a class trip to the Culinary Institute of America had me convinced I would be going there after graduation. It wasn’t about the food, but it was very much about the atmosphere and the ambiance. I was in awe of the students in the kitchen behind the glass. The way they looked, their uniforms and everything they were doing. It was like watching a performance. They didn’t seem to be bothered by all the people dining or that all of our attention was focused on them. They just kept going. Of course, by the time I graduated high school, I had long forgotten about that experience and my desire to go to culinary school and focused on pursuing my dreams of playing basketball. Off to college I went, to pursue that dream and a degree in Exercise Science. Upon graduation, I began my career in the health club industry, teetering back and forth from fitness to food and food to fitness.
In 2008, while working in midtown Manhattan, I was introduced to Matthew Kenney and raw food with the opening of his café, Free Foods NYC. I was immediately in love with the raw lasagna. The layers of fresh vegetables, sun-dried tomato marinara, macadamia ricotta, and pesto were absolutely divine. It was like a party in my mouth. Everything I ate there changed the way I saw food. The food was so fresh and clean, delicious and satisfying, and not only to my belly but to my taste buds. Almost immediately, I purchased every book he had written to date and purchased just about all of the equipment I needed to prepare it. I quickly realized there was no way I had the time or the patience to see this through, or maybe I was just too intimidated to try.
Fast-forward to September 2010. Recently married, I relocated to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Approximately ten months later, no longer working in the fitness industry and 50 pounds heavier than I had ever been, I reconnected with an old colleague, Elena Pezzo. We met for a walk along the beach and we talked about my desire to combine my passions for food and fitness. It was at that moment she told me about the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and strongly insisted I enroll. A couple of months later, I did exactly that. I enrolled in the one-year course that would begin January 2012. What a way to start the year. And that is a year I will never forget. It was the beginning of a transformation in many ways that I never saw coming.
“Food is an experience. It should be fun”. F O O D I S L O V E
During that year I learned about over a hundred different dietary theories. There are so many to choose from. What really worked for me was choosing to go plant-based. First, a 28-day challenge, with the help of Matthew Kenney’s Raw Express. I lost 25 pounds in those 28 days. Of course, I went back to eating a Standard American Diet but found myself with little interest in animal protein, with the exception of chicken, eggs, and cheese. Eventually, I gave up chicken and two years later and three attempts to eliminate eggs and cheese, I was no longer waking up congested or inflamed and was a lot less gassy. It was not easy and I still failed to commit 100% of the time, but I noticed the difference and continued to keep moving forward. This book is not about convincing you or telling you what or how to eat or that a plant-based diet is the best way to get healthy and lose weight. As a matter of fact, none of my clients are vegan or vegetarian. They just want healthier options. And so here I am, helping them along the way and sharing my passion for feel-good food.
Food is about an experience. It should be fun. It should make you feel good before, during and after you eat it. No rules. No pressure. It’s not about what you know or don’t know. It’s about what you want. What you choose. It is about what satisfies you. And, if along the way you hit a few bumps, setbacks or get off track, don’t be so hard on yourself. It happens to all of us. The idea is not to strive for perfection but to strive to show yourself lots and lots of love. This book is dedicated to everyone out there who has struggled with food…too much, too little, binging, purging, restricting, overindulging. To those who can cook, cannot cook, choose not to cook, are too busy, not interested, or overwhelmed by the thought of it.
On March 4, 2014, I began cooking for my first client. When I look back at the path that led me to this moment, I could not be more grateful for every single person and experience that brought me here. And now, I would like to share not just my story but also the many stories about the clients I cook for and our journey together, their journey. We are all inspired by something or someone; I like to keep it simple and so I hope you find these stories compelling and the recipes easy enough.
On August 8, 2018, I released my self-published cookbook Food Is Love on Amazon. It is also available on Kindle. www.foodislovebook.com
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The good news is that I was fully supported by the people around me but there were certainly struggles. Fear…how was I going to support myself by leaving my “job” and going out on my own. What about culinary school? How will people know I am credible. And what about experience? I have zero experience cooking for other people. And then there was the figuring out of who I was, what I do and how to grow my business to stay busy, impact more lives and make enough money.
Please tell us about Eat With Angelique.
I am a plant-based personal chef. I cook for people in their homes typically weekly meals. I also cook for retreats, small/intimate special occasions like anniversary dinners, valentine’s day dinners, date night, birthday’s and weddings. Everything I do is custom to the client’s taste, as well as, allergens and health. None of my clients are plant-based and most do not have an interest in becoming plant-based but they do want to eat healthily, which I have to say is the best part of my job. Creating a unique experience in a safe place where people are able to discover new and exciting food they have never tried before.
What sets me apart from others is my love of food, of people and for what I do. I literally infuse love in everything I do. Eat With Angelique is not just about feeding your food but also about feeding your mind, body, and soul. Food is an experience, it is personal and for some people a form of entertainment.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
There are so many but I guess if I had to choose I would say it is our first Christmas in our new home in San Jose, California. I have a twin brother and when were six years old we both got our first bike for Christmas. We were big believers in Santa Claus. My mother always made banana nut bread and left in on the chimney mantle with a glass of milk. We were allowed to stay up until midnight and open one gift before we went to bed. Sound asleep we were with excitement for the morning and of course, you could imagine our surprise when we ran to the tree and there were bikes waiting for up. My brother had a black race bike and I had a pink bike with a white basket with flowers. We were so excited we woke our parents up because we were riding our new bikes (with training wheels) through the kitchen and into the living room. There were two open pathways at each end of the kitchen.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.eatwithangelique.com
- Phone: 9547890300
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/eatwithangelique
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/eatwithangelique
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/EatWithAngelque
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/eatwithangelque/
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