The days have been flying by, and it’s been a busy summer at ICE. Although it feels like summer just started, we’re nearing the end of July. So what can we do to make sure we make the most of the rest of our summer?

One of the most frequent questions NGI chef instructors get is “What should I stock my pantry with?” Chef Elliott Prag shared his pantry staples on our blog where he went back to basics and thousands of years of Japanese tradition. One of the items on his list of staples is umeboshi paste, which is pureed pickled Japanese ume plums.

Gabrielle Kennedy is a graduate of NGI's Chef’s Training Program. After completing her training at NGI, she dove into the restaurant world, working at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Mercer Kitchen in New York City, and The Ravens vegan restaurant in Mendocino, California. Gabrielle now works as a freelance caterer and private chef, and she recently completed four months of volunteer cooking on Africa Mercy, the largest non-governmental hospital ship in the world. Read on to learn about her volunteer work and how attending NGI helped prepare her for this life-changing experience

Ankur Parikh, M.D. is an emergency room physician who has his earned a certificate in Food Therapy from NGI, has studied Ayurvedic science and learned advanced culinary techniques at the Basque Culinary Center. Ankur has had a passion for food since he was young. Ankur is a first-generation Gujarati American, and his family, like many others, revolved around the kitchen, the gas burners, the table and all of the space in between.