Limitless possibilities in spectacular destinations, Balance Holidays' exceptionally curated wellbeing travel experiences bring individuals on multi-sensory journeys that enrich and awaken the heart, body and mind..
Morgan began a personal quest to heal herself after a rough postpartum. Soon, she found there was a recurring theme that mental and physical wellness began with nutrition. After a series of personal trials and being certified by the Institute For Integrative Nutrition and Cornell University’s Plant-Based Nutrition programme, Morganic Kitchen was born. In this piece with Balance Holidays, Morgan Witkin will explore holistic health and wellness as a result of plants and the concept of Primary Food.
Q: Can you describe a typical day on your plate?
Morgan: Let me start by emphasising that no two days are alike for me. My meals are rarely carbon copies of each other because I always try to add variation in my diet. Season, location, availability and desire all fluctuate. I do, however, try to keep up a few behaviours during the week; snacking on nuts and seeds or warm water with lemon in the morning.
Here's a regular day for me:
I start with warm water and lemon juice, then a green juice with a 90/10 vegetable/fruit ratio. Juice of the day: spinach, kale, fennel, celery, ginger lemon.
For a late breakfast, I make buckwheat and oat porridge with coconut and rice milk. I like to add banana, berries, and almond butter.
Late morning snack: ceremonial grade matcha powder, plant-based milk, turmeric, ginger, and date syrup as sweetener. I add MCT oil for an extra bounce.
Lunch is a “buddha bowl” of quinoa, rocket lettuce, braised brussels sprouts, chickpeas, kale, and a tahini sauce. (I prepare my dishes using leftovers from prior meals. These bowls are wonderful for getting in a variety of veggies, protein, and carbs.)
Evening snack: activated almonds
Dinner: Grilled tempeh with a huge spinach salad dressed with extra virgin olive oil, lemon, and salt. I also add toasted mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, flax). I often skip dessert but when I do have it, I try to eat fruit instead. Last night, I had a slice of gluten free, vegan and refined sugar-free apple cake last night while I was testing recipes for my new TV season. A cup of peppermint tea followed.
Q: How did your personal postpartum period lead you to a journey of focusing on what we put into our bodies and building a formula that maintains holistic health?
Morgan: I was depressed after a rough pregnancy and traumatic birth. Not being a great lover of medications, let alone psycho-pharmaceuticals, this was the only solution offered to me. That is when I got into nutrition and then holistic wellness. Deep down, I knew I did not want to live with sadness and I did not want to raise a child in that state. The way out for me was to start reading all I could on diet and mental health. I learned about the biome and serotonin. I studied with Kris Carr, Mark Hyman and Alejandro Junger.
Inching towards the kitchen on a long-isolated beach with no Wi-Fi, plenty of leisure and a growing pile of nutrition and cookery books, I found myself almost eight summers ago. A new journey began when I combined my longing for cooking and culinary exploration with my new habits. So I started documenting my invention and discovery.
I started avidly reading, researching, and testing new wholefoods and plant-based meals. I started experimenting with raw, alkaline, and macrobiotic foods. Every day brought new practices and insights into holistic health: a blend of physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing. I slowly recovered. It took me a while to realise that wellness, mentally and physically, begins with what we put into our bodies. From that point on, I found a new way of life.
Q: What are your non-negotiables when it comes to maintaining holistic health?
Morgan: My non-negotiables are both intangible and dietary. Water, plenty of it, is a must when it comes to our diet. 90% plant-based diet Alkaline eating to the max. Our food should be vibrant. My everyday non-negotiables are present, conscious, patient, thankful. Move your body such as take a quick walk or do yoga. Remember to rest, relax, have fun, laugh, smile, and love.
Q: Your style and approach to cooking is 100% plant-based, which many may automatically assume taste will be sacrificed. What are your thoughts on this area and how do you score a balance between nutrition, health, taste and variety?
Morgan: I love this! To be honest, I cook what I want to eat. I adore food. Even before I became a chef or a vegan, I loved eating. It is one of my biggest pleasures, therefore I make sure everything I cook, serve or eat is amazing. There are no secret ingredients, just a keen sense of taste and texture, and lots of affection. Due to the fact that my cuisine is plant-based, vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and refined flour-free, it is one of the healthiest and cleanest diets on the planet. When feasible, I use organic, local, and seasonal ingredients.
Q: What is Primary Food and how can it affect our day lifestyles?
Morgan: Primary food is described as something which nourishes us but cannot be eaten. Physical activity, career, spirituality and relationships are primary foods. Food has a greater impact on our lives than clothing. We can be more productive and happier if we eat well. Developing effective main eating behaviours is a game changer for optimal health.
Q: You believe that food should nourish us from within, being gentle and kind on our bodies. However, contemporary agricultural practices are strongly linked to the quality and nutritional values of fresh produce today. What tentative steps can we take to ensure we are taking care and nourishing our bodies adequately?
Morgan: True, modern farming practises often degrade the quality and nutritional worth of our crops. Sadly, there is often little we can do. Achieving a sustainable food system will require cooperation from governments, businesses, and individuals. However, we can all take little actions to ensure our nourishment intake, such as buying only locally grown, seasonal foods and certified organic fruits. Eating consciously and educating ourselves about access to healthy foods and healthy food practices are essential. I am a firm believer in keeping our diets alkaline on the PH scale. Although eating a plant-based, whole food diet is not required to be strict or excessive, it is an excellent approach to assure nourishment.
Q: What are some signs that point to us feeling out of the loop from our authentic selves because of what we are feeding our bodies? If so, what can we do about it?
Morgan: When we are out of alignment, our bodies provide us clear signals. Relationships, routines, or habits might cause us to be spiritually or emotionally out of sync. Mindfulness, meditation, or simply identifying where we are out of alignment and working on changing our habits might help. Inflammation, as defined by Journal of Clinical Medicine, is a common symptom of poor nutrition-induced body misalignment, and is the body's attempt to cure itself by fighting off toxic substances. Also mentioned in the piece, inflammation is when our cells are damaged and our bodies release substances that activate our immune systems. For example, fever, weariness, lack of energy, headache, nausea, loss of appetite, stiffness.
Find Morgan on the upcoming Elevate and Nourish Mallorca Retreat, 29th April - 03rd May 2022.
Sign up to our newsletter for exclusive retreat launches, priority access to events and curated wellbeing content
