Beauty Chat With Vegan Chef Doug Mcnish
We love our local community of holistic health and beauty enthusiasts and want to spread the love! Doug McNish is an amazing vegan and raw food chef who proves that healthy and sustainable meals can be delicious and mouth-watering too. We’re so enthusiastic about his work that we’re proudly hosting him at all three of our Toronto spas as a part of his Organically Local Book Tour! Click here for more info, and keep reading to find out how Doug defines beauty + the one thing he’d like to shout from the rooftops!
What impact does your work have on our shared local community and our world?
I focus so much on nourishing those around me, but when I take a moment and stop and think about the ripple effect of what I do, it is something I am truly grateful for in life. My work not only supports organic farmers and ethical businesses around the globe, but through purchasing only from businesses that give back in positive ways to our ecosystem, and our shared economy, the impact isn’t something I believe we can even measure, but I know it’s significant – and it’s not just my work, but the work of my entire community, supporting community. Serving good food with a smile each Saturday at The Evergreen Brickworks Farmers’ Market, as an example, is a wonderful opportunity for me to nourish people, but to also spread the word of health and compassion to thousands each week. My 3 best-selling, vegan cookbooks hopefully mean more people cooking, and more people cooking plant-based, real food meals – if everyone ate meat-free, and with their friends and family, can you imagine what a wonderful world it could be?
How do you personally define beauty?
Beauty to me is a combination of many different attributes; how one carries themselves, how they speak, how they treat their fellow man and woman, and of course, how they take care of themselves. I feel like (in North America especially), we currently focus too much on outer beauty and not what the person is actually made of, and their values.
What is one of your daily morning or night time rituals?
I try to begin each day focused on good food, health, and strength. Having a nutrient dense breakfast before I start my day is important to me – a good start is everything, it’s setting my intention for the day, and as a chef and entrepreneur, my days are long! I often enjoy non-dairy yogurt topped with healthy servings of chia seeds, hemp seeds, goji berries, raw cashews and fresh blueberries.
What is your favourite/must have beauty product?
I cannot live without a great face wash – after cooking it feels great to wash my face. Like with my food, and all of my choices, it has to be free of all preservatives, toxic chemicals, and I make sure that it’s vegan, including not being tested on animals. (Thank you, Pure + Simple for having so many options!)
The message you want to shout from the rooftop is…
EAT REAL FOOD! (See the picture of me with this post that proves how much I like to share the message!) I want people to understand that the food they put into their bodies determines who they are – and affects our entire world. By consuming organic plant-based food, and a lot of raw choices, you will not only feel better, but you will be leaving a smaller carbon foot print on our eco system. With every bite you are making a difference, so it just makes good sense to me to make it a positive one.
About Doug McNish:
I’m Doug McNish, a chef, a consultant, an educator, a speaker, and a committed plant pusher and activist. I am based in Toronto, and can be found working around the clock in my Public Kitchen, bringing vegan mainstream.
I have a hunger and drive to create beautiful and delicious meals, and take healthy, organic, plant-based cuisine to a whole new level. I use the highest quality ingredients possible, and enjoy challenging mainstream thought on diet and ethics.
My first cookbook, “Eat Raw, Eat Well, 400 Raw, Vegan and Gluten Free Recipes” won “Best Vegetarian Cookbook in the World, 2012” by the “World Gourmand Cookbook Awards” held in Paris, France. I’ve also written “Raw, Quick and Delicious, 5-Ingredient Recipes in 15 Minutes,” and my newest release is “Vegan Everyday, 500 Delicious Recipes.”
