On my recent trip to Paris I photographed Jennifer Hart-Smith in her food lab in the 20th arrondisement. I’ve been an admirer of Jennifer’s food creations for almost a decade now, so when I finally got to meet her in person, it was a pretty special moment. We chatted all things food and even did a cookbook swap. Based in Paris, Jennifer is a Franco-Australian naturopath chef and author of her many cookbooks. Coming from a design background, Jennifer plates up her ingredients in the most artistic way. Often pushing the aesthetic boundaries, her dishes are not only beautiful but also provoke curiosity. Her play of textures and colours are truly unique to her love of combining foraged plants and other ingredients. With healthy plant-based dishes that focus on sensual pleasure, Jennifer always reaches for local, organic and seasonal products that are essential to one’s health and the planet’s. When not testing for new recipes, Jennifer is often commissioned to cater for gallery openings, distinctive private functions and many more. 

“It is important to maintain the essence of our choice of meal. A small gesture like adding a pinch of smoked salt, a dash of flavoured vinegar, a green or red oil, a spicy condiment, a bitter paste – can really take us on a wonderful journey of taste.”

Last year Jennifer teamed up with Elvira Masson (a French food columnist) to release a much needed book called “Le Manuel Gourmand de la Ménopause” (The Gourmet Menopause Manual). As the title suggests, it contains wholesome nourishing recipes that provide big boost of health benefits to our body and mind. This book takes us on a journey of joy of cooking and exploring different cuisines that should remain a practice in our everyday life to help overcome the physiological changes that our body goes through during menopause.

Here Jennifer shares one of the recipes from her latest book, a pitch black velvety black sesame silken tofu steam cake which was out of this world! With sesame seeds being one of the main ingredients, it is rich in calcium which is great for our bone health and helps preserve muscle mass.

“One of the crucial nutritional issues during this period is maintaining the balanced absorption of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus. Sesame seed is a central ingredient in Japan, where osteoarticular problems are less widespread than in France.” 

Check out this interview on “The Gourmet Menopause Manual” and the book is now available for purchase at online bookstores.