Ginna BB Gordon is an author, artist and chef with an amazing lifetime of creative experience. Her artistic journeys have taken her through high-end custom bookbinding, fine silk and Tibetan Thangka painting, and custom clothing design and adornment.
Ginna has spent much of her adult life studying cooking and the work of spiritual and philosophical teachers. After discovering Ayurveda in 1990 while reading Dr. Deepak Chopra’s Perfect Health, she began applying the principles to her own life and to her recipes.
Ginna’s grandfather, Jess Grover Bell, founded Bonne Bell Cosmetics in 1920 and was a strong example of entrepreneur and dedicated family man. Growing up in a household where her father was a professional musician and composer and her mother an architect and painter allowed Ginna’s artistic nature to flourish.
Ginna studied design and drama in Monterey while working as a legal assistant. Her dramatic roles in little theaters on the Monterey Peninsula further opened her heart to her creative calling. In 1976 she received a Certificate of Book Arts from a private school in Carmel Valley. She then opened the Book Studio where, for the next twelve years, she repaired fine bindings, designed books and taught book arts. During this time, Ginna also maintained a boutique catering business, specializing in food and cakes for intimate gatherings.
After continuing her studies in design at UCLA Extension, Ginna moved to the Napa Valley, where she discovered yet another calling - to support the spiritual growth in others. She began researching retreat centers and discovered Rainbow Ranch Group Retreat in Calistoga, where she began cooking for retreatants. Her love of food as art and spiritual expression naturally placed her in this position. While cooking at Rainbow, she designed, erected and lived in a 400 square foot tipi to honor her Cherokee heritage.
In 1994, while at Rainbow Ranch, Ginna met Dr. David Simon, Medical Director of Deepak Chopra's Center for Well Being, who became her mentor in the study of Ayurveda, a science of health and diet originating in India. Her background in art, spiritual seeking and conscious food preparation combined well with the sensibility and simplicity of balancing the body, mind and spirit.
In January, 1995, she began her work at the Chopra Center in Del Mar California, and (after a six month hiatus during which she was personal chef for actor Steven Seagal) she then moved to the new location in La Jolla, where she designed the kitchen facility, the menus and recipes for the Chopra Center for Well Being programs. While at the Chopra Center, Ginna and staff provided three gourmet vegetarian meals per day for guests, using organic produce and organic butter, ghee, yogurt and cheese made in the Chopra Center kitchen. Ginna and staff also operated Quantum Soup Cafe located at the Center, which provided fresh soups, salads, breads, desserts and drinks to the public.
Out of her work at the Chopra Center and years of collected personal recipes came her first book, from Random House Publishers: A Simple Celebration, A Vegetarian Cookbook for Body, Mind and Spirit, the Nutritional Program for the Chopra Center for Well Being. This book is co-authored (under the name of Ginna Bell Bragg) with Dr. David Simon.
Ginna's cookbook A Simple Celebration is a tool for making Ayurvedic cooking more accessible and user-friendly to Westerners and to share the power and beauty of creating sacred space in the kitchen. Dr. Chopra's recommendations for bringing balance of body, mind and spirit into the Western home are shown in an easy and flexible way using ingredients typically found in Western kitchens. Dosha, or body type recommendations, are given for each recipe, as well as a chart that describes the taste quality of common vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices, dairy and other foods.
From August, 1997 to July, 2000, Ginna focused her attention on cooking demonstrations, teaching cooking skills and developing recipes. She continued the expansion of her work at the Thunderbird Cafe in the Barnyard, Carmel, California, where she encouraged the use of fresh ingredients, delicious menu items and baked goods and a calm and peaceful kitchen.
After serving as consultant to Cornucopia Cafe in Carmel for one year, Ginna and business partners, Richard and Carolyn Gold, opened Ginna’s Cafe in Carmel Valley Village.
Throughout all these years, Ginna has continued her study of art, the creation of beauty, and a commitment to her community.
Today, Ginna continues her work with Carmel Music Society as its Director of Development, Marketing and Design, and also maintains her ceramic studio in beautiful Carmel Valley.
Through the development of gourmet recipes, growing vegetables and writing about her colorful history, Ginna continues her love of kitchen-craft and the creation of beauty.
Ginna is currently at work on her next book, Morning Glory, A Cook’s Memoir, which tracks the life path of a cook.