Attainable, imaginative, delicious solutions that bring people and planet together

Daring, delicious, doable solutions to reunite people and planet

Hello and welcome!

Puneeta Chhitwal-Varma<br/><small>Photo by Tanvi Madkaiker</small>
Puneeta Chhitwal-Varma
Photo by Tanvi Madkaiker

My name is Puneeta, and I'm a food writer and sustainability expert. I teach people how to build a sustainable, healthy and beautiful way of life by adopting kitchen routines and practices that work for their lives. It's about shrinking waste, making the most of what’s available and doing it all with grace and resilience.

My first book, a good-for-us, climate-conscious guide to attainable cooking is out April 2024.

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  • I believe food is more than just what happens around the table.
  • I believe through our choices, we have the opportunity to effect enormous positive change in the systems around us.
  • I believe life is better with flavour, flexibility and diversity. 

Welcome to my world!

My work is inspired by the scientific evidence around food and its connection with climate change and also recent food and mood research. Science is finally catching up with what traditional wisdom has always known; what's good for us is also good for the planet.

MapleandMarigold.com, my blog, started as a love letter to India and Canada. Maple represents Canada and my life here. Marigold, with its colour and significance in Indian culture, represents my roots in India. Today, I help people feel at home in the kitchen so they may cook for themselves and their loved ones with ease and confidence.

Thank you for visiting my digital home and inviting me into your real one.

With gratitude and optimism,

Puneeta

The Sunday
Cooking Club
"Shorts"

July 30, 2023
Mood-Boosting Foods:
the connection between our bellies and the brain
Annette-Hamm-and-Puneeta

"I first met Puneeta on our Morning Live set in 2019, and she's taught me so much since then!

From her, I've learned to use every last bit of produce in my fridge, and how to make those fruits and veggies last longer. I save money with her advice to 'shop my pantry' and 'shop my fridge' (especially helpful during pandemic lockdowns).

Puneeta, my lovely friend, you have no idea how many times I think of you — and what you'd do — in my kitchen."

– Annette Hamm, Morning Live, CHCH

People who cook with me say...

I absolutely love this hour of cooking. The professional approach and presentation of the teaching is superb. Engaging, fun & excellent for anyone. Every step, ingredient, spice, how to reduce waste, how to use items from your pantry etc. is all explained in great detail.

At the end of the session you leave with not only your master dish, but with more knowledge about making sustainable changes and better food choices. I highly recommend this club.

Geeta G.
Millennial Lifestyle

I am really enjoying the Sunday Cooking Club with Puneeta at Maple and Marigold. She makes it so easy to follow along and make these fantastic foods with minimal effort.

Bonus.. these foods are also mood enhancers. The whole class is a mood enhancer. I was afraid of cooking with sweet potatoes and voila.. the cook along helped me get over my irrational fears and I created something delicious.

Priyanka S.

The Sunday Cooking Club with Puneeta was such a joy to attend. It felt amazing to prep some healthy and delicious food for the week and to use flavours and ingredients that are out of my usual rotation.

Puneeta is a wealth of information and an absolute joy. I love her approach to making cooking easy but still yummy!

Sara S.

I just adored your Sunday cooking class. You have a real talent for keeping things interesting in the kitchen! The daal came out delicious and I am so pleased with my leftovers for dinner this evening.

I felt energized by the grounding exercise at the start of the class and extremely proud of myself for the meal I created with what I had in my kitchen!

Jennifer S.

Staying Grounded logo

Staying Grounded is a fortnightly-ish newsletter with inspiration for living an abundant, delicious and doable life that brings people and planet closer together.

cook more at home

reduce what you throw away

explore delicious, real-life meal ideas

nourish yourself and your loved ones

Recent TV Appearances

See more TV appearances and check out my upcoming events.

Cook Once, Eat Thrice on CTV's The Social
Cook Once, Eat Thrice
Puneeta on CHCH Morning Live
Break. Up. With. Plastic.
Puneeta Chhitwal-Varma Sustainability Expert and Author on The Social
How Food Diversity Can Save The Planet
Melanie and Sid from Breakfast Television are joined by Food & Sustainability Expert, Puneeta Chhitwal-Varma, to discuss affordable and sustainable kitchen habits.
3 Affordable and Practical Ways to Reduce Food Waste
Natural landscape with wildflowers next to the lake
Worried about the wildfire smoke? Here’s what you can do at home
Tranquil lake scene in Canada with children
Dear Canada, Our Forests are Burning. Here’s what we can do
Staying Grounded logo

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