Leticia Schwartz
About Leticia Schwartz
Chef Leticia Schwartz is a cookbook
author, a spokesperson and a televi-
sion host who is passionate about
food and cooking, health and fit-
ness, and culture and travel. Born
and raised in Brazil, Schwartz earned
her BA in economics and worked in
finance. In 1997, Schwartz moved to
New York, where she studied at the
French Culinary Institute (now the
International Culinary Center) and
worked at Le Cirque and La Caravelle
in New York City. She then studied
journalism and wrote two cookbooks
about Brazilian cuisine: “The Brazilian
Kitchen,” which won an award for
Best Latin Cookbook at the Gourmand
World Cookbook Awards, and “My Rio
de Janiero: A Cookbook.”
Influences
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Schwartz devel-
oped her style of cooking naturally. It
reflects her passion for native Brazil-
ian cuisine. She became interested
in cooking at an early age, thanks in
part to her family’s housekeeper, and
soon envisioned a career in cooking,
However, she made a decision to study
economics instead, due to a lack of
culinary schools in Rio at that time.
Schwartz’s aim is to prove that
healthy eating really can be delicious.
Say goodbye to boring, flavorless foods.
She focuses on nutritious ingredients in
her recipes, such as beans, grains, nuts
and seeds, fruits and vegetables, and
herbs and spices. Her cooking captures
the essence of traditional Latin recipes
but with a newer, more healthful twist.
As far as some favorite dishes that
Schwartz likes to prepare for family
and friends, arroz con pollo, red snap-
per with apricot and hazelnuts, and
Brazil nut and raspberry cake are just
a few that top the list. But, she added,
there are “many, many more.”On health and diabetes
Schwartz has a special connection to
diabetes. Her grandfather had type
2 diabetes and passed away from
complications from this condition. This
prompted her family to rethink their
lifestyle and take steps to lower their
risk for developing diabetes. As a chef
and as a Latina, Schwartz understands
some of the common challenges His-
panics face, like healthy eating, exer-
cising, working with their doctors and
coping with having diabetes.
She joined forces with America’s
Diabetes Challenge (www.americas-
diabeteschallenge.com), a campaign
to help educate and empower people
to manage their own diabetes through
diet, exercise and partnering with their
health-care provider.
Schwartz participated in “A Touch
of Sugar,” a documentary produced
by Merck and narrated by Viola Davis.
The film is told through the voices
of people living with the disease,
their loved ones and advocates. In
the film, Schwartz shares her passion
for healthy cooking to help people
improve their eating habits, proving
that you don’t have to sacrifice flavor
to eat healthy. Visit http://www.atouchof-
sugarfilm.com to learn more. On the
website, you can watch the trailer,
access type 2 diabetes resources and
recipes in English and Spanish, and find
out how you can help make an impact
on your own family and community.
Schwartz’s third cookbook, “Latin
Superfoods,” is full of delicious recipes
that are great for the whole family. (Sky-
horse Publishing, due out October 2019.)Michell
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For more international cuisine from Leticia Schwartz,
visit DiabetesSelfManagement.com/recipes38 September/October 2019