Celebrate the flavors of the season with this hands-on cooking class inspired by our organic farm. You’ll learn to prepare fresh, seasonal Mexican recipes and Ranch classics that honor nature’s rhythms and are rooted in the Rancho La Puerta philosophy of wellness, sustainability, and farm-to-table living.
Cooking with the Seasons invites guests to explore recipes that highlight fresh, seasonal ingredients, many sourced directly from our organic farm.
Whether you’re a passionate home cook or just starting your culinary journey, you’ll leave with practical skills, inspiration, and a deeper connection to nature through food.
Mexican Menu – tradition, culture, and love.
- Salsa Trio (verde, roja & macha)
- Ranch Guacamole & Baked Chips
- Baked Salmon or catch of the day
- Tortilla soup
- Mole from scratch
- Mushroom Pastor tacos
- Red rice
- Arroz con leche / alegrias
- Cajeta
- Agua de Horchata
- Mocktail in season (margarita,clamato,paloma,sangria)
Cooking with the Seasons:Sign Up
Tuesday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
Capacity: 14 guests
Price: $100 USD, tax included
Chef Vivian Mercado is a young culinary talent with roots deeply intertwined with the vibrant flavors of her homeland, Baja California. Graduating from the Culinary School at the University of Baja California UABC in Ensenada, Vivian embarked on a culinary journey that began by honing her skills at a wholesome meal prep kitchen. Eager to explore the diverse tapestry of local Baja flavors, she took the role of a young manager at a culinary venture, where she delved into the realms of local wines, specialty coffee and artisanal bread. After three enriching years, Vivian returned to Tecate, where she found her culinary sanctuary at Rancho La Puerta. Starting at Tierra Alegre Juice Bar, Vivian delighted our guests with delicious and nutritious smoothies and cold pressed juice creations; a year later she had the opportunity to join the main Rancho La Puerta kitchen as Sous Chef for three years. Now, at La Cocina que Canta, Head Chef Vivian brings her expertise, creativity, and unwavering passion for culinary excellence to every dish she crafts, to every class she teaches.
Robert Sherman is President of Robert Sherman Fitness LLC., a personal training, group fitness, and studio management consulting company. Robert’s primary clientele is focused on training for balance, mobility, cardio, yoga, and strength as we age. He has authored articles and spoken to active aging populations about his method called Aging Strong, centered around longevity, at conferences such as AARP and the National Diabetes Foundation. He is a content creator, instructor, and Program Lead for Core Health and Fitness (Schwinn, StairMaster, Nautilus, and Throwdown). He has served as a Master Instructor and program developer globally for Reebok, SPRI, Beachbody, and Total Gym. With 43 years in health, he is a much sought-after program consultant and speaker, serving on the Industry Advisory Panel for the American Council on Exercise and as a content provider/consultant for Boutique Fitness Solutions. Robert played collegiate baseball, holds a BS degree in business from the University of Maryland, and is a Gold Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor by ACE and ACSM.
Angela Todaro is an award-winning choreographer with extensive experience in Bellydance, Bollywood, jazz, tap, ballet, contemporary, musical theatre, hip hop and acrobatics. She recently choreographed for Netflix, Funny or Die along with many theatrical shows, award shows, dance companies, tv, music videos and film. She has been a teaching artist for over 20 years and teaches masterclasses and workshops for both children and adults of all levels.
Pam R. Taub, MD, FACC, FASPC is a board-certified cardiologist and internationally recognized expert in cardiometabolic disease.
Deborah Burand has walked labyrinths from Europe to North America, including the labyrinth designed by her father in their hometown of Anderson, Indiana. She also facilitates labyrinth walks for law students at New York University’s School of Law where she is a tenured professor of clinical law. Deborah began facilitating labyrinth walks after accompanying her father to France where together they walked the Chartres Cathedral’s labyrinth and began studying under Lauren Artress, founder and creative director of Veriditas (a nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring personal and planetary change and renewal through the labyrinth experience). Deborah’s essay, Circling the Ranch, which was published online by the Ranch to commemorate its 80th anniversary, describes how she brought her then 86- year-old father to walk the Ranch’s labyrinth. The Council on Foreign Relations recently named Deborah as one of its Higher Education Ambassador Fellows for 2024-2025. In May 2024, Deborah was presented with NYU Law School’s Distinguished Teaching Award in recognition of her inspirational and innovative pedagogy and outstanding contributions to the legal academy. The Financial Times also has recognized her multi-disciplinary teaching materials for their creativity and innovation in sustainable finance education.
Siva Mohan, MD, MPH, is a big picture person. An integrationist. A pattern seer. As a UN Social Affairs Officer and working globally with private clients for over 13 years, Dr. Siva realized that even educated, active people are missing the basics of wellness. Across cultures and continents, we are leading lives set up for chronic disease and discontentment. Siva’s mission is to teach people to feel again; to be able to hear what their bodies and hearts are guiding them to shift. And then, to give them tools and approaches to accomplish those healthy shifts. With an MD and a background in behavior change and education, Siva presents an empowering East-West Mind-Body version of Ayurveda. She guides her audience to individualized wellness lifestyle with tools and approaches from Ayurveda, emotional wellness, and modern science.
Jennifer Harris is a San Diego-based entrepreneur who has spent over two decades writing and storytelling across sectors. A graduate of University of Chicago’s Master of the Arts Program in the Humanities and UC Davis’s undergraduate program in English and Creative Writing, Jennifer has built a career applying creative thinking and writing techniques to the fields of education, arts and culture, health and environmental sciences, and philanthropy. Over the last decade, Jennifer has produced custom storytelling workshops for hundreds of individuals, associations, and companies, she attained a Certificate in Narrative Health Care from Lenoir Rhyne University, and she is now chair of the board for Health Story Collaborative, a patient-centered, research-based nonprofit organization committed to the therapeutic power of storytelling. Her consultancy, JH Collective, Inc., continues to fuse her personal and professional ethos—an ethos centered on the power of stories; that stories can serve personal growth and healing, develop organizations and business, and preserve communities and histories. On the Web jhcollectiveinc.com. LinkedIn: Jennifer Harris
Pepper Schwartz, Ph.D
Dawn Petter is a clinical herbalist and flower essence practitioner based in New York City. She is a graduate of Arbor Vitae School of Traditional Herbalism and is trained as a flower essence practitioner with Delta Gardens and Findhorn Essences. Dawn offers in depth health consults and custom formulated remedies to her clients. She teaches classes and retreats at corporations and institutions including, the NY, and Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, NBC, Adobe and DE Shaw, to name a few. Her classes are imaginative, accessible, and encourage students to use herbal medicine in everyday life. Dawn is the owner of Petalune Herbals which specializes in wild and organic herbal skincare.
Katherine Ellison has more than 30 years of wide-ranging experience in digging for facts, framing messages, and producing vivid prose. From 1984-99, Ellison reported for Knight Ridder Newspapers, winning several awards including a Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting. Since then, she has authored, co-authored, and ghost-written ten books and worked as a communication consultant and speechwriter for clients including Bill Gates, major Silicon Valley investors, the Ford, Packard, and Irvine foundations and Cater Communications.
A. Van Jordan is the author of five collections of poetry: Rise, which won the PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award (Tia Chucha Press, 2001); M-A-C-N-O-L-I-A, (2005), which was listed as one the Best Books of 2005 by The London Times; Quantum Lyrics, (2007); and The Cineaste, (2013), W.W. Norton & Co. Jordan has been awarded a Whiting Writers Award, an Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, and a Pushcart Prize. He is also a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship (2007), a United States Artists Fellowship (2009), and a Lannan Literary Award in Poetry (2015). His latest collection, When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again, winner of the 2024 Hurston Wright Legacy Award, was released in 2023 (W.W. Norton & Co). Among his many academic appointments, he most recently served as the Robert Hayden Collegiate Professor of English Literature at The University of Michigan, before coming to Stanford University, where he currently holds the Humanities and Sciences Chair in English Literature, and where he also serves as part of the inaugural faculty in the Department of African & African American Studies.
A native of Philadelphia, Sebastian Picht comes from a multi-generational musical family. He began his piano training with his grandmother, Asya Kalendar. Sebastian has recently presented solo recitals in Iceland and Switzerland, the latter as a representative of the Lang Lang Foundation’s Young Scholars Program Class of 2022-24. He has also given educational outreach concerts as a member of the Foundation, as well as solo and chamber performances in local schools and senior residences under the auspices of Allegro Music Consultants and Temple Music Prep. Sebastian has participated in several music festivals, such as the Curtis Summerfest, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and most recently, the Aspen Music Festival last summer. Sebastian also enjoys cooking, writing, and has a keen interest in politics and issues related to social justice. He graduated with a Diploma from the International Baccalaureate Program in 2023, and is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Piano Performance from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, studying with Professor Alexander Shtarkman.
Martha Aarons’ professional career began with her appointment as principal flute of the North Carolina Symphony. Subsequently she played with the Cleveland Orchestra for 25 years. After becoming a freelancer, she performed often with the Philadelphia Orchestra. During this time, she appeared as guest principal flute with the Metropolitan Opera, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, and Mostly Mozart Festival. Ms. Aarons served as Artist Faculty with the Aspen Music Festival for 19 years. Her teaching credits include the Cleveland Institute of Music, Duke University, University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill, Oberlin College, Skidmore College, Shanghai Conservatory and Eastman School of Music. She has been soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, and with the Aspen Festival Chamber and Festival orchestras. Her first solo CD, The History of the Tango, is recorded on the Azica label and additionally features pianist Frances Renzi and Grammy-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux. Her newest release is the CD Last Silence with violinist Lev Polyakin and pianist Frances Renzi. Martha is also an avid runner and has qualified for her sixth consecutive Boston Marathon in April 2026!
Lev Polyakin was appointed co-concertmaster of the Moscow Chamber Orchestra at age 21. In that position he was regularly featured as soloist. In the U.S. he served as assistant concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra, as well as concertmaster of the American Academy of Conducting in Aspen Music Festival. Lev has won several prizes in international violin competitions, including the Beethoven Prize in Carl Flesch in London, and Gold Medal and Special Prize in Brescia, Italy. In addition to solo performances with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, he has appeared as soloist with the London Mozart Players, Royal Philharmonic, and Cleveland Orchestra. Recording credits include Melodia, BBC, National Public Radio, and Decca. He is prominently featured on an album entitled Cafe Music comprising chamber music by Paul Schoenfield, which was nominated for a Grammy. Lev has a special interest in jazz and has recorded three CDs, entitled Russian Blue, The Other Side of the Road, and Christmas Kaleidoscope. He is also featured in the recent release by Azica Records entitled Last Silence, with flutist Martha Aarons and pianist Frances Renzi.
John Scott Marrone has over 30 years of experience teaching in the New York area. In addition to Astronomy, Scott teaches Forensics, Environmental Studies, and Oceanography. He has been recognized by Ciba-Geigy Corporation for his work in promoting science literacy and received the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award in 2007 from Manhattan College. In 1998, Scott was invited by the Aruban Government to substitute for astronomer Jay Pasachoff to lead the observation of the total solar eclipse. Most recently, Scott led the public observing session on Mauna Kea. Scott has also led observing on cruises in the Galapagos and Tahiti.
Sarah-Anne Schumann, MD, MPH, is a physician who is board certified in both Family Medicine and Lifestyle Medicine. She graduated from Harvard College, Harvard Medical School, and Columbia Mailman School of Public Health. She previously served on the medical school faculty at the University of Chicago and University of Oklahoma-Tulsa. She completed her certificate in plant-based nutrition at eCornell and the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies and is an advanced teacher of therapeutic yoga, health and wellbeing coach, and a certified mindfulness meditation and mindful self-compassion teacher. She is completing a fellowship at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. Her website is 
Chloé Doutre-Roussel is an author, consultant, educator, and internationally recognized expert with more than 35 years of experience in fine cacao and chocolate. A former buyer at Fortnum and Mason, shop manager at Ladurée, author of The Chocolate Connoisseur, and creator of Chloe Chocolat in Paris, she has also worked with El Ceibo, a cooperative of cocoa farmers in Bolivia, to launch a vertically integrated tree to bar to bonbon brand. Chloe is a regular juror at the Academy of Chocolate Awards (AOC) and at the Northwest Chocolate Festival. She is member of honor of the AOC, founding member of the Academia del Chocolate of Ecuador, member of the Advisory Board of the Fine Chocolate Industry Association (FCIA), and co-chair of the Chocolate Committee for the Good Food Awards.