Hello everyone!

Thank you for visiting Eat Boutique. This site is no longer accepting new messages or content submissions. It exists in a paused status for the moment. It is currently available for you to search and read, but there is no new recipe content being added at this time.

Starting in 2021, I have started a new business focused on holistic entrepreneurship. My new business is called We Are Magic Studio and I’d love to tell you a little bit about it.

We Are Magic Studio offers intuitive and mindful business coaching to a diverse group of entrepreneurs by:

1. Nurturing your humanness to infuse it into your business

2. Aligning or birthing your business from your personal values

3. Creating brand storytelling (AKA, marketing) that’s authentic, resulting in more impactful contributions to your clients and community

I’m Maggie Battista, a business guide and storyteller. I’ve launched some of the first super successful internet start-ups; built engaged communities of millions; designed intentional brands, including Eat Boutique (this award-winning retail brand you’re visiting right now); and operated hospitality businesses here and in France. I’ve raised funds for organizations & people in crisis, and written two cookbooks and multiple essays on how we relate to food.

Over the last many years, I’ve done inner work to practice consciousness, embodiment & self-love. I’ve done deep dives on feminism & the brain-wave states. I’ve developed a connection with my inner voice and knows the power of meditation first-hand. I’m on the yoga mat nearly every day. I connect with my intuition at every opportunity and believe in the power of connecting with your true nature through human design. Through all this study and practice, I have become an eternal seeker of alignment.

Over on We Are Magic Studio, I will empower entrepreneurs to use all of their magic to make beautiful brands that inspire and serve their communities.

If you subscribe to my new website, I’ll send you a powerful guided visualization on how to envision your future self. This visualization is just a snippet of the world of tools I offer to help you launch and realign your business with your values. I hope you’ll consider signing up to access this powerful free tool.

Thank you for being here.

I’ve written and paused on this letter at least a dozen times since we started the new year. And, certainly, in the last two months since the pandemic has shut most of us in our homes, it’s just never seemed like a good time to write to you.

But perhaps, more than any other time, now is the perfect time to try to string some words together to share where I’ve been, what I’m doing, and a few things that might be helpful right now.

First, I’m okay. I hope that you and your family are okay, too. It seems like a strange thing to say, given that so many of us have been affected by this virus, but I wanted to say it nonetheless: I really do hope you’re okay.

In the year since I last posted, I published a second cookbook and traveled the country to share it with people who love food and who sought to change their relationship with food. And somewhere during this last year, some things changed.

I want to tell you about the process of change. I want to share it with you openly, like a teen recounting her darkest journal posts, all scribbled and doodled up. But change is just change. Some change can feel crummy and also be the best possible thing to ever happen. My change felt like a roller coaster ride.

Imagine you’re riding a roller coaster through all its twist and turns, equally frightened and excited by each upcoming curve. Then imagine that roller coaster stopping suddenly, jolting you back in your seat, causing a deep pain in your chest, though sometimes the tightness creeps up into your throat, causing you to revisit why you even got on the roller coaster in the first place because sudden stops are even scarier than all those twists and turns. Now imagine that happening several times in a row.

I’ve felt those sudden jolts, those sudden stops, plenty of times, the most significant being right after my mother’s death in 2017. But last year was filled with all the sudden jolts all the time. And, be assured, a series of sudden jolts sets you straight. They scare you plenty, of course, but they also come just before a big reset.

Many of you have followed my journey for years. Since I’ve been writing on Eat Boutique since 2007, many of you have followed me for 13 years. That’s a long time. That’s the kind of time that creates deep attachments. I am attached to you. Maybe some of you are attached to me, too.

Because we’re attached to each other, at least until you opt to unsubscribe, I want to share some slightly personal stuff with you.

Though all these years of writing about and working in food, all 13 years, I have felt a deep connection to this work. I have enjoyed crafting recipes and making food content for all of you. I have loved cultivating food retail experiences. And, ultimately, I’ve loved this time to wrestle with my relationship with food.

But all the sudden stops in the last year have encouraged me to go inward, to root deeply in my practices for coping and living and thriving. I have still cooked and I always return to the kitchen during a time of rest and reset. There is little like a recipe in which to repose and renew.

But I’ve also grounded into a daily yoga practice, a walking meditation practice, a study of consciousness, an initial examination of feminism, deep talks with my inner voice, journaling for gratitude and for the processing of feelings, and so many other alignment practices.

I am no angel. Honestly, I started these practices to cope with all the sudden stops. But, without intention, I also got to know myself better. I have reconnected with me, with my knowing, with who I was all along, I have better aligned myself with whatever happens next.

With absolute intention, I am blending my food & wellness experience with my small business & start-up experience and all of my alignment experience to emerge as something entirely new. And I have launched a new studio through which I will share new offerings.

Eat Boutique Studio is, of course, derived from this very site that I started 13 years ago. However, instead of posting recipes on Eat Boutique, I am putting my time, effort, and mind toward supporting the growth of small businesses everywhere, with a keen emphasis on food, service, and retail businesses.

This is most certainly a strange time to announce a new business venture. But if there was ever a time that small business needs support, it is now. It is not next week or in six months. The time is now.

Small businesses have struggled since the beginning of time but now is an exceptionally difficult moment for them, for everyone. Most restaurants, cafes, and bakeries are closed for now (and some for good). Retail is also closed up in real life and those who can are moving entirely online.

And for those serving others, well, it’s difficult to serve your customers during this pandemic unless you are entirely online. And for those without the experience and know-how, well, they’re basically on a permanent pause.

Given all this, I thought it was a good time to tell you that I’m shifting into a more official role as a Business Guide. On Eat Boutique Studio, I’ll design guides and coursework for small business advancement, and explore topics such as redefining happiness, cultivating abundance, making space for creativity, designing bespoke brands, crafting intentional stories, and so much more.

I will also host lively online mentorship sessions where entrepreneurs may explore ways to shape and grow their businesses while embodying the values that define their work and life. My initial product offering will launch later this summer and, as all things, it will evolve from there.

For those of you who are not at all in small business, I want you to know that I’m creating guides for all humans, not just entrepreneurs. Each guide or offering will host a blend of content on alignment, creativity, food & wellness, and, of course, values-based entrepreneurship.

As an example, my first guide was created to help you, all of us, figure out how to stay calm and hopeful during this difficult time. It’s free and you can access it right here: 10 Ways to Stay Calm and Hopeful Right Now – or Anytime!

By downloading that guide, you’ll be on the list to hear about new offerings as the weeks and months go on. You can certainly stay subscribed here too because Eat Boutique will transition in the coming year. While I’m not quite sure of its exact shape just yet, I will stay in touch periodically to keep you in the loop and to stay attached to you because, well, you are very special to me.

Before I go, I think many of you are wondering what happened to that food retail space I had planned to open. It’s a long, long story with many twists and turns and sudden stops. If you want to hear it sometime, please let me know in the comments. Even a simple ?‍ will tell me that you want to hear all the complicated details sometime.

Lastly, if you want to stay in close contact with me, follow me on Instagram. I post there several times each week and it’s a great place for us to stay attached to each other. In fact, I just posted about chocolate chip cookies. If cookies don’t nurture our attachment, I don’t know what will.

Thank you so very much. Stay calm, stay well, stay aligned!

My new cookbook, A New Way to Food, has been out in the world for two whole weeks. And, girl, it’s been a roller coaster ride. The book released and I received so many sweet, kind, and very emotional messages. Gosh, it is so wonderful to connect with so many of you in such a meaningful way.

Thank you for supporting A New Way to Food. I hope the stories and recipes are feeding your body and your soul. I’m incredibly humbled by this process and fortified to know I am not alone. You are not alone, too.

Since we’re all in this together, I would love to ask for a little more help. Brief, honest reviews are so helpful to writers and to all the potential consumers of my cookbook. If you have not yet written a review on Amazon, would you mind taking five minutes to share your opinion now? Just click on this link and leave your review there.

If you have left a review over on Amazon, thank you! You’re already a rock star.

Reviews go a long way in making sure that books that are right for you float into your search list over there. And, ideally, more popular books cultivate 50+ reviews. I’m working toward that goal and would really appreciate your help getting there.

“I’m so excited, and I just can’t hide it

I’m about to lose control and I think I like it

I’m so excited, and I just can’t hide it

And I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I want you, I want you..” to watch this book video and learn more about my new cookbook!

Okay, maybe it’s not the perfect song to celebrate the release of my new book but I’ve been humming it all weekend in preparation for today. Those Pointer Sisters really new how to infuse a song with enthusiasm, right?!

Today is the official publication date for my second cookbook, “A New Way to Food: 100 Recipes to Encourage a Healthy Relationship with Food, Nourish Your Beautiful Body, and Celebrate Real Wellness for Life.”

If you pre-ordered it, thank you so much. It should be on its way to your kitchen now. Perhaps you just need to bop down to the local bookstore to pick it up. In that case, I’ve now supplied you with the soundtrack for said trot down to the store. Try “Break Out” — their multi-platinum album released in 1983. You’re welcome.

If you’re still wondering whether this book is for you, that’s cool. My sweet publisher Roost Books made a very short video to showcase the book. You can view it by clicking here.

In addition, I’m hosting an Instagram Live on Wednesday, February 6 at 12pm EST to share more about the book and answer your questions. Just follow me on Instagram to listen in.

One more thing: my first event will be a cookbook launch party at Harvard Book Store on Tuesday, February 12 at 7pm. There will be snacks (two recipes from the book) and wine and books and me signing books and me hugging each of you. I would just love for my arms to get tired so please come.

2018 was my year for doing a lot of internal work. My focus has been on making mindfulness a forever habit and finding a centeredness deep within me, separate from all the tornado-like busyness going on around me.

In 2018, I found my way to Iyengar yoga (90 minutes, three times per week). I participated in an intense class on consciousness and learned how to get out of my mind (in a good way). I started reading a whole lot more, sometimes up to a book per week. I am back to journaling and write letters to my inner voice, like all the time. I’ve cried a lot too–because all this internal work brings up tough stuff–and the crying is good: to release intense emotions in the moment provides real relief (rather than create blocks that may hold onto me for a while).

In 2018, I also laid a lot of ground work for the three big projects in my life: (1) creative business coaching, (2) opening an in-real-life food market, and (3) making my second cookbook, A New Way to Food. Between visioning and meeting and writing and meditating and hustling, a lot of ground work was laid, people.

If 2018 was internal, 2019 is all about going external. I just launched a new website dedicated to all the non-food things in my life. I’ve enlisted new coaching clients through that site and hope you’ll take a look, especially if you think I can be helpful to you. I’m way close to opening my first food market in Boston and will make an announcement about that any day now. And, probably more emotional than anything else, my new cookbook goes out into the world next week.

In just six days, my self-help cookbook hybrid is going to debut and, oh my gosh, I’m nervous and excited and nervous. I put a lot of heart into A New Way to Food. Certainly, there are about 110 recipes that I developed and tested over and over again. But in tandem with the recipes, I wrote a lot of words that take you through my transformation to self-love (which, in my humble opinion, is a far bigger win than any weight loss).

In keeping with my external theme, I’m going to visit select cities to share my cookbook this spring. But it all starts in Boston–my hometown! And I want to let you know that Harvard Bookstore is hosting my book’s launch party on Tuesday, February 12 from 7-9pm. There will be wine and snacks from the book and a book signing and a short interview. And it’s all free. RSVP right here!

I’m looking forward to getting way more external in 2019 and can’t wait to hug each of you on February 12! (For those of you elsewhere, I will be visiting a few cities this spring and early summer. Those dates and venues will be released soon.)

Over the last month or two, I’ve shared my new cookbook with some of my friends and colleagues. So many of them have helped me in various ways–either by being so confident in who they are, by showing me what real self love looks like, or by simply being on the other end of an email during this intensely emotional time. Writing a book is fun, but it’s also full of all the feelings!

Because of their inspiration, I partnered up with Universal Standard to show them and all of you my love! Universal Standard is an inclusive fashion brand that exists to give fashion freedom to all women. If 67% of women in the U.S. wear a size 14 or above, why did the fashion world present such dismal options for so long? With Universal Standard, a size 26 can finally shop in the same way as a size 6—with only style as the filter. We all deserve the same level of style, quality, and, quite frankly, respect.

Since Universal Standard and my cookbook both prioritize self-love, body positivity, and body confidence, I asked them to participate in clothing giveaways with all of my friends. They want to support cooking in comfort so they said “yes” instantly! Over the next few weeks, 14 friends will showcase and feature super soft and beautiful Loungewear pieces and they’ll give you the opportunity to win a set of 4 pieces (valued at $180) plus a copy of my new cookbook, A New Way to Food. Yes, it almost sounds too good to be true–but it’s real, people. It’s so real.

To help you navigate all the giveaways, here’s a list of participating friends and their Instagram names. Click over to their profile on the day listed to enter the giveaways. The more you enter, the greater your chances of winning. I’m sending big hugs to all the people on this list–thank you!

• Jan 17: Haley Hunt Davis, Brewing Happiness
• Jan 17: Sarah Kieffer, The Vanilla Bean Blog
• Jan 22: Mirna Valerio, The Mirnavator
• Jan 23: Andie Mitchell, Andie Mitchell
• Jan 25: Roxane Gay, Roxane Gay
• Jan 25: Kennesha Poe-Buycks, Restoration House
• Jan 26: Jerrelle Guy, Chocolate for Basil
• Jan 27: Jessamyn Stanley, My Name is Jessamyn
• Jan 28: Dana Falsetti, Nola Trees
• Jan 29: Alejandra Ramos, Always Alejandra
• Jan 31: Marissa McClellan, Food in Jars
• Feb 2: Karen Akunowicz, Karen Akunowicz
• Feb 4: Sherrie Castellano, Sher Castellano

Naturally, if you cannot wait for the giveaways, please pick up a copy of my cookbook A New Way to Food either at your favorite local bookseller, Barnes & Noble, IndieBound, or Amazon. And you can shop to your heart’s content at Universal Standard–just leave some clothes for me, please! (Like this dress and this bodysuit and this sweater!) xox

P.S. Giveaway dates may change at the last moment due to so many things out of our control. Please keep watching their feeds for updates!

Hey, guess what? I wrote another book! Wait, I told you that already. Here’s the real news…

A couple of days ago, I finally got to unbox an advanced copy of my new cookbook and I went on Instagram to share the unboxing with you because this book took more than just two years to write. It actually took three decades to come to life. (Check out the unboxing in the “Cookbook” tab on my Instagram page here. Please forgive the squeals of delight!)

A New Way to Food is the story, the real story, of how I found my kind of real wellness after decades of not only de-prioritizing me, but hating every inch of me. It’s how I learned to get a lot healthier but also how I learned to love my puffy belly and appreciate my thick thighs. And it has lots of good stuff inside, more than 100 recipes that I enjoyed on this journey to real wellness. It’s all the food that helped me learn to love me, at last.

I’m so excited to share this story with you but if I can take a moment to be very honest with you, I need to say that I’m feeling lots of butterflies about this book. In A New Way to Food, I share a lot of personal challenges around being the fat girl. I tell you tough stories from my childhood and triumphant stories from just a couple years back. I talk about love and acceptance and forgiveness. And I do it using the best words I could find.

I know my approach to wellness is not what society wants me to embrace. Society wants me to feel bad that I didn’t lose weight sooner. Society wants me to lose more weight. Society wants me to continue to hate every inch of me. I’m almost halfway through life (if I’m lucky) and I just can’t worry about what society thinks of my body anymore. I have to tell this story, even if it’s going to be hard for me and (perhaps even) hard for some of you.

But I appreciate this safe space in which I can tell you that I’m totally elated and totally scared to share this book with you. I am planning to visit several cities once the book releases on February 5, and it’s going to be just a wee bit difficult for me to bare my tender feelings in front of some of you (those who come to my signings). But I feel this story is one that needs to be told, however difficult it is for me. (If you want to hug it out before the book release, I’m co-moderating a panel of amazing chefs, bakers, brewers, and bottled-tea makers on how they funded their dream food business on Jan 28th. Get tickets now.)

And… I trust that if I get a little teary in New York City or Boston or Minneapolis or Seattle, well, someone will help me out by raising their hand or changing the subject or asking me something super fun, like “Can you really make Gooey Baked Ziti without dairy?”

I’ll wipe the tear and assure you that, “Yes, you can. And, more so, it’s delicious!”

Just so you know, many friends and colleagues are helping me share the cookbook with the world over the next couple of months. In fact, there will be some major giveaways leading up to the book’s release, starting as early as next week. Woot! If you want to follow along with all the happenings, please follow me on Instagram. I’ll post all the news there.

Now, I want to talk to you about these Instant Faux Pho Jars. This jar is essential to how I get through the day right now. It was a life saver when I started on this wellness journey and continues to be as I contemplate moving away from the New England winters as soon as possible because the cool temps now feel like freezing temps, brrr. (I’m not really moving but Florida sounds grand about now!)

To make this meal, I push anything and everything into a jar with a block of noodles. Fresh veg, leftover veg, pickled veg, all works well. If you want extra protein, spoon in leftover beans or chickpeas. Then, fill that jar up with boiling water, shake, and serve.

Gosh, I wish food was always this easy. I mean, it is for me and there are many other recipes like this in my new cookbook, but lunch isn’t always feel this easy. I hope you make it easy by making these!

There are years when I eat every holiday meal in a restaurant. Gosh, I hate those years.

I prefer the years when I have the time and mindfulness to craft a special meal for the ones I love. This year, I’ll do a little of both so here are some dishes that are inspiring my home cooking.

After the recipes, stay tuned for a special event announcement (YAY!)

Recipes That Call To Me This Holiday Season

Onion & Wild Herb Flatbread: Chef Camille Becerra created a fabulous winter meal menu and I’m craving the flatbread and the Spanish Turmeric Sangria with Thai Basil.

Real Onion Dip: I put this out at my Holiday Open House and it’s gone in mere moments. Serve with chips or veg or anything that feels good to you. Don’t tell anyone it’s vegan.

Cosmo Cocktail Sausages: Nigella always makes dishes I love. As a sucker for a classic Cosmopolitan cocktail, these may be right up my alley. There are increasing way more vegan sausage options at the market so I may give this treatment a try.

Smoky Paella with Fennel: Paella is my perennial celebration dish. Seafood and rice, slowly simmered in stock and spice, are the foods that hugs you from the inside. I included a recipe for my favorite version–one that’s packed with golden fennel, smoked paprika, and saffron–in my new cookbook, A New Way to Food. By the way, if you pre-order my cookbook now, you’ll get instant access to a pre-order gift I designed just for you.

Butternut Squash Wellington: Similar in style to a Beef Wellington, but filled with squash and mushrooms and garlic and miso and other great flavors.

Miso Sweet Potato Pie with Crispy Onion Crust: Yes, please. This side dish could take center stage with a bright green salad with lots of lemon juice.

Honey Balsamic Garlic Mushrooms: This looks like a great side dish to something savory and meaty.

Roasted Cauliflower with Dates, Pine Nuts and Thyme: Another lovely side dish that’s reminiscent of an Italian cauliflower dish.

Pasta e Fagioli: A soup from my childhood that always feels good this time of year. Going to try Carla’s recipe.

Honey Almond Cake with Rosemary and Citrus: This vegan cake is on my to-make list over the holidays. It’s a fancy little cake filled with the best of the season–almonds, rosemary, orange, and honey.

Christmas Tree Meringues: These meringues are tiny and bright, especially when colored or wrapped in festive ribbon.

Eggnog: This is my kind of eggnog. It’s vegan, rich, and sweetened with natural sugars that are wee bit lower on the glycemic index.

I hope some of these recipes are helpful as you pull your holiday plan together. xox, Maggie

A New Fresh Collective Event

We’re keeping all the good times rolling with The Fresh Collective, a networking group for female food entrepreneurs.

On January 28, Leigh Belanger and I will host a conversation around “How I Funded My Dream Food Business” with women who have done it and are in process on it now, too. Unlike other events, where all the panelists are 20 years ahead of the rest of us, these women are all over the spectrum–some are in the early days of raising money and others are well into their fourth or fifth business. You’ll learn how they’re doing it in real-time and leave with lessons to make it happen yourself. Grab your ticket now.

I look forward to seeing you there!