Sacha
Sacha is the Editorial Director of Create & Cultivate, former Editorial Director of MyDomaine, skincare aficionado, wife, and mom who lives in LA. This Aussie has been a vegetarian her whole life and loves cooking at home with her family. Sacha chatted with us about her go-to dinner, morning routine, and what she eats to keep her skin looking so damn amazing. Read below and get inspired.
What does healthy eating mean to you?
Eating what makes you feel good.
I was raised as a vegetarian—we now have three generations—so my parents instilled a healthy eating policy from day one. While vegetarianism is quite common now, it wasn’t trendy when I was growing up in the 80s and in fact, it was almost considered a little weird. I was always asked the same question “what do you eat?” which I always found odd since eating a diet without meat was so normal and obvious to me—it’s all I knew.
We didn’t eat out much growing up as there wasn’t any dedicated vegetarian restaurants (although we got used to altering the menu), but thankfully my mom is an incredible cook. We ate food from all over the world—Indian, Mexican, Thai, Japanese, Italian, Moroccan, and more. Eating was our favorite hobby and as a family of seven (five kids, two adults), we could really eat. But growing up on the beach in Australia meant we were always outdoors so our eating was always balanced with a healthy active lifestyle.
My upbringing has definitely transitioned into adulthood. My husband and I, along with our 11-year-old son, are all vegetarian and we cook a lot of food from scratch at home—we only get takeout once a week on Friday night—and I think that is the secret to staying healthy because you know what’s going into the food. I also love the idea of shopping locally. I love nothing more than walking home from the Silverlake Farmers Market with a basket full of fresh greens.
“I think [cooking at home from scratch] is the secret to staying healthy because you know what’s going into the food.”
Your position at Create & Cultivate involves work travel for different summits and panel. Are there any go-to travel snacks that you always have on hand to keep you energized?
I always bring protein bars with me whenever I travel so I can rely on that as a snack instead of the coffee biscuits on the plane (but I do eat them sometimes too). I will ask for a peppermint or chamomile tea on the plane to keep me hydrated and load up on the soda water (sometimes too much still water can make me feel nauseous in the air). I love Kind nut bars too.
Do you cook during the week? If so, what is one of your go-to quick healthy dinners to whip up?
We cook every night during the week except Friday night, which is our family take-out night. My husband makes dinner most nights though, he’s such an amazing cook.
We love Mexican food for a quick healthy dinner. Troy makes an insane Mexican bowl with rice, beans, and salad, topped with handmade guacamole, salsa, and a little sour cream with cheese. It’s so delicious. I like to eat mine with tortilla chips. It’s really quick because you just throw the rice in a rice cooker, make a simple beans mix, and everything else can be quickly chopped up. It’s about 30 minutes all up sometimes less. If I have time (usually on a Sunday night), my go-to is enchiladas or gluten-free lasagna. It’s so good.
Do you have a morning staple food that you love to start your day with? What’s a typical breakfast during the week?
My husband (affectionately) calls me the liquid lady because I start my day re-hydrating.
I begin every morning with a hot tea, usually a rooibos chai with a dash of pea milk. Then I’ll have a decaf coffee (I quit coffee years ago, but I still love the ritual, so we grind our own decaf beans and make coffee in our Breville espresso machine). After coffee, I’ll make a green smoothie with kale, strawberries, and flax milk (unsweetened or original). Then I drink a mix of rooibos or herbal tea throughout the day to stay hydrated.
If I’m trying to drink more water, I’ll add cucumber or lemon to my water. I don’t start eating solid food until about 10:30 to 11 am and often I have a protein bar or oatmeal. Then I’ll have a bigger meal around noon.
When you’re out to dinner at a fave restaurant, do you usually order healthy or do you YOLO and order what you want?
When I’m at a restaurant, I’ll eat whatever I want, but if I have a decadent dinner, then I’ll opt-out of the dessert and finish with a port and a cup of tea. I’m really all about striking a balance most of the time, but if I’m out, then I’m there to have a good time and enjoy myself and that means ordering the damn truffle fries!
You have amazing skin and we know you have a passion for skincare. In addition to your impressive skincare routine, have you discovered any dietary tips that help improve your skin?
Firstly, thank you so much! I have been taking care of my skin since I was 14 years old, so it’s definitely something I’m deeply passionate about. I do think diet has a significant impact on skin health, so I try to keep dairy at a minimum, up my leafy green intake (the green morning smoothie helps) and stay hydrated. But the biggest ingredient I try to avoid is sugar. I truly think sugar is what really messes up with my skin. Other than that, I swear by the Hum nutrition Skin Heroes pre+probiotic. It keeps my gut microbiome in good health and we all know how much the gut is responsible for clear, healthy skin.
What’s one food-related health trend you’re excited about or want to try out in 2020?
Ingestible skincare. I’m excited to see where technology can take us. I have just started taking The Nue Co. ingestible retinol called Skin Filter designed to improve sun damage, pigmentation, breakouts and blur impurities in just sixty days. I am also excited about the new Hum Nutrition Mighty Night which helps with cell turnover to improve tone and texture while you sleep. So much newness and possibility in this space.
