Rancho La Puerta in Tecate, Mexico
The Food
Julie Register visited this Destination Spa in December 2006

• Fitness • Main Article • Accommodations • Spa •

THE FOOD AT RANCHO LA PUERTA

Rancho La Puerto Dining Hall

*The Dining Hall at Rancho La Puerta

The food at Rancho La Puerta is fabulous! The cuisine is lacto-ovo vegetarian with a fresh seafood "catch of the day" brought in from the fish market of nearby Ensenada five to six times a week for dinner, and several times for lunch. (A vegetarian alternative entrée is always offered for those who don't eat fish or shellfish). The diet is based on 1500 calories per day for women and 1700 calories per day for men - low protein (20%), fat, sodium, and refined flour and sugar -- high fiber and complex carbohydrates (for energy). It is closely aligned with that recommended by Walter C. Willett, M.D. from Harvard's Graduate School of Public Health, author of Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating.

*A Salad at Rancho La Puerta

*Berry Dessert at Rancho La Puerta

The presentation of plated food is artful and the flavor delicious. I was never hungry, yet I had plenty of energy for all the days' many activities. For those interested in additional healthy fats, virgin olive oil, natural peanut butter, nuts and seeds are available. My husband firmly believes he needs 40% protein in his diet (to build muscle). Not a problem! Second helpings and alternate entrees are available. He could get flaked tuna at lunch in addition to the day's menu and often requested an additional main dish at dinner. On Friday, wine and Tecate Beer were served at dinner to toast a successful week.

Rancho Tres Estrellas

Head Gardener, Salvador Tinajero, Shows Us Six Varieties of Beets Grown at Rancho Tres Estrellas

The ingredients are fresh and wonderfully flavorful. Seasonal fruits and vegetables are freshly picked at Rancho Tres Estrellas (Ranch of Three Stars), Rancho La Puerta's 6-acre organic garden.

*Organic Vegetable Garden Breatkfast Hike at Rancho La Puerta

Anita Boen, manager of Tres Estrellas, welcomes us to the breakfast part of the Organic Vegetable Garden Breakfast Hike

The Breakfast Buffet on the Organic Vegetable Garden Breakfast Hike

On Tuesday morning, we enjoyed a special treat and went on the Organic Vegetable Garden Breakfast Hike, a 4-mile, 2.5-hour roundtrip trek over rolling hills to Tres Estrellas. We left the Lounge 6 am (in the cold and dark), walked through the dawn and arrived at Tres Estrellas where a wonderful breakfast (frittata, fresh potatoes, bread with chocolate bits, fresh fruit and more) was waiting for us. After our meal, Salvador Tinajero, the enthusiastic head gardener (there are eight full-time gardeners), gave us a tour of the garden. We then hopped on a van to Professor's Park in Tecate for a tour of the Las Piedras Nature Interpretive Center (part of Fundación La Puerta, the non-profit partner of Rancho La Puerta). We enjoyed the Organic Vegetable Garden Breakfast Hike so much, we signed up for another on Thursday.

Las Piedras Nature Interpretive Center in Professor's Park in Tecate

A Classroom in Las Piedras Nature Interpretive Center

While at Tres Estrellas, we had a preview of La Cocina Que Canta (The Kitchen That Sings), The Ranch's Spa Cooking School that will open in June 2007. The school’s landscape and building designer is Sarah Livia Brightwood, Deborah Szekely's daughter. The 4,500-square-foot facility will have a large hands-on classroom/kitchen, cookbook library, and culinary gift shop. When it opens, guests will enjoy a progressive series of hands-on classes using fresh, organic ingredients in inspiring ways followed by delicious meals. The school will also offer an à la carte program of shorter, individual classes.)

La Cocina Que Canta (The Kitchen That Sings), Rancho La Puerta's Spa Cooking School

Cooking Demo with Executive Chef Gonzalo Mendoza

While it was too soon to actually experience the new cooking school, we were able to attend a Cooking Demo with Executive Chef Gonzalo Mendoza on Wednesday. He prepared Miso Lime Tempeh Nori Soup, Oriental Style Cellophane Noodles on Peanut Ginger Garlic Sauce and Seasonal Berries. We got to sample the food and got a few recipes. One of the favorites was Rancho La Puerta Spa Guacamole. The recipe appears below:

Additional recipes can be found below:
White Bean Soup with Greens and Rosemary
Broccoli Frittata
Rancho La Puerta Fruit Crisp

On Friday, we attended Joe Sweeney's How to Take the Ranch Home. Joe offered the following tips for eating for the health of it:

1. Eat more fruits and vegetables, breads and cereals, potatoes, pasta, rice.
2. Eat less high fat animal and dairy products.
3. Order more baked, broiled, steamed and fresh foods from the menu.
4. Order less fried, creamed, breaded and basted food from the menu.
5. Take low fat food to work: fruit, veggies, popcorn (no oil), tuna (water packed).
6. Read the labels. If the product is fat free, be suspicious. It may be loaded with sugar.
7. Call the American Heart Association at 1-800-242-8721 and request free information on "An Eating Plan for Healthy Americans."
8. Eat a moderate breakfast, a larger lunch and a smaller dinner.
9. Eat when body is hungry, stop when body is satisfied, eat what your body wants.
10. Drink eight glasses of water daily. Drink more when exercising or in hot climates.

Jeff and I both left determined to eat healthier and ordered The Rancho La Puerta Cookbook: 175 Bold Vegetarian Recipes from America's Premier Fitness Spa (now out print) from an Amazon.com reseller as soon as we got home. We hope to find some more of the recipes we enjoyed during our week at The Ranch. We also look forward to the new Rancho La Puerta cookbook to be published at the end of 2007.

FITNESS at RANCHO LA PUERTA	BACK TO THE MAIN ARTICLE about RANCH LA PUERTA
OUR CASITA at RANCHO LA PUERTA	PERSONAL REWARDS THE SPAS at RANCHO LA PUERTA

A Talk with Rancho La Puerta Founder, Deborah Szekely