At first glance, Camilla Marcus is a study in contrasts. She takes her work seriously, yet brings a sense of playfulness to everything she does. She can pull off a dinner party for 100, but might not plan the menu until that morning, letting the farmers market be her guide. Her vegetable-forward cooking is deeply nourishing—and she’s never one to turn down a midday glass of wine.
But nothing about Camilla feels inconsistent. She’s so rooted in who she is that all of her layers come together as a beautifully aligned life—one that reflects the passionate approach she brings to her work as a regenerative chef, founder of west~bourne, and mother of four in Los Angeles.
To celebrate the launch of her cookbook My Regenerative Kitchen, Camilla joined me for a backyard lunch under the trees with a few friends. We cooked vibrant, plant-based dishes from the book—tartines, a crunchy fennel salad, and the most stunning rose chocolate bark—poured natural wine, and soaked up her perspective on what it actually means to cook in a way that nurtures both our bodies and the earth.
Her philosophy, in her own words: “What’s good for our soil is always better for our health.”
What I love most about how Camilla thinks about food is the sense of liberation in it. She writes about improvisational cooking the way musicians talk about jazz—not knowing exactly where the notes will lead is the point. The farmers market becomes her guide, and “not being in control” becomes both liberating and inspiring rather than stressful. I left our lunch genuinely rethinking the relationship between spontaneity and nourishment.
Her book makes a compelling case that our everyday choices—the ingredients we buy, how we prep them, what we do with what’s left—are actually the most accessible entry points into climate action. Not through deprivation or a complete overhaul, but through small, cumulative shifts that start to feel natural over time.
Camilla Marcus’s Tips for a Zero-Waste Kitchen
Break up with paper towels. Keep a stack of washable kitchen towels within reach—you’ll be surprised how quickly you stop missing the paper.
Reimagine your pantry. Swap plastic wrap for beeswax alternatives. Use glass jars and metal tins for everything from flours to preserves.
Go reusable with storage. Stasher silicone bags replace Ziploc. Camilla also freezes stocks, sauces, and leftover wine in silicone molds for future meals.
Use the whole vegetable. No stalk left behind. Fennel fronds become garnish, stalks go into stock, and most produce doesn’t need peeling.
Rethink “scraps.” Before you toss it, ask: Can this add flavor to a broth or sauce? Onion peels, herb stems, cheese rinds—all fair game. Compost what you truly can’t cook.
Clean green. Look for nontoxic brands like Koala Eco, Branch Basics, and Grove Collaborative.
Start composting. A countertop bin (Camilla loves the Bamboozle) is a low-barrier start. Composting emits 20x fewer greenhouse gases than landfilling food waste.
Adapted from My Regenerative Kitchen
All of this—the swaps, the scraps, the compost bin—sounds like discipline. But sitting in the backyard that afternoon, none of it felt that way. It felt like the most natural extension of how Camilla moves through the world: paying attention, wasting nothing, finding pleasure in the process. The menu below is where we started. Where you take it is entirely up to you.
The Whole Stalk or Bulb Salad
A salad that earns its name. Every part of the fennel shows up here—fronds, stalks, bulb—and the result is crunchy and bright.
Tartines with Heirloom Tomato, Blue Cheese, and Golden Beets
The tartines came together the way Camilla cooks everything—intuitively, with whatever looked best at the market. Proof that the simplest things, made with good ingredients, don’t need much else.
Spring Pea Gazpacho
Cold, verdant, and soooo fresh—this is the soup that makes you want to drink your vegetables. (Without giving you V8 vibes.)
Dark Chocolate Bark with Bee Pollen, Rose Petals, and Pink Salt
The bark that ended our lunch on the highest possible note. It’s as stunning to look at as it is to eat—and it comes together faster than you’d think.
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