16 Day in-person
LEVEL 1: Raw Food Chef
Residency Program
Raw Food Chef Certification Program & Holistic Healing Retreat
16 Day in-person​
LEVEL 1: Raw Food Chef Residency Program
Raw Food Chef Certification Program & Holistic Healing Retreat
LEVEL 1: Raw Food Chef
Immersive Raw Food Chef Certification Program.
Master Plant-Based Culinary Arts and Holistic Wellness
Level 1 Raw Food Chef Certification Program
16-Day Residency | Ometepe Island
JAN 25TH – FEB 9TH, 2026
Transform Your Culinary Skills and Your Relationship with Food
Join us for a 16-day residency designed to deepen your understanding of plant-based nutrition and raw food preparation. This program is about much more than learning to create nourishing meals—it’s about connecting with food on a deeper level, understanding its healing power, and applying that wisdom to your life.
Throughout the program, you’ll explore the art of raw food preparation, learning to balance flavors and textures while gaining practical skills in the kitchen. You’ll also experience holistic practices like breathwork, laughter journeys, yoga, meditation and other wellness techniques that go beyond the food itself, helping you heal and find balance in your body and mind.
This residency is an opportunity to not only refine your culinary skills but also to develop a healthier relationship with food and yourself. Whether you’re looking to expand your culinary knowledge, embrace plant-based living, or deepen your personal wellness journey, this program will support your growth and help you build a solid foundation for a healthier, more empowered life.
What You Will Learn
- Foundation Staple Foods
- Nutrient Dense Plant-Based Nutrition
- Knife Skills
- Flavor Balancing
- How to Stock your Kitchen
- Soaking and Sprouting
- Cultured and Fermented Foods, Kimchi and Kraut
- Sustainability and Ethical Choices
- Nut-Free Cuisine and Food Sensitivities
- Detoxification and Your pH
- Healthy Digestion and your Gut Microbiome
- Foods the Promote Digestion
- Tips and Tricks for Healthy Detoxification
- Healing Spices from Around the World
- Gourmet Raw Vegan Meals
- Raw Desserts and Superfoods
Transform Your Culinary Skills and Your Relationship with Food
Our Level 1 program offers a profound exploration into mastering plant-based raw food cuisine. Beyond learning essential cooking techniques, you’ll delve into taste balancing—harmonizing flavors and textures to create exceptional dishes. This program is designed to help you develop your culinary identity, crafting signature meals that reflect your creativity and passion for healthy living.
This immersive 16-day residency goes beyond raw food preparation—it’s a journey of personal transformation. Dive into understanding plant-based nutrition and hone your skills in food healing. Embrace additional tools like transformational breathwork, laughter journeys, and other holistic practices that nurture healing on a deeper level.
Whether you’re a food enthusiast, aspiring chef, or advocate for plant-based living, this program ignites your passion for food while empowering you with holistic wellness practices to make a positive impact in your community and beyond.
Level 2 Raw Food Chef Certification
Join us in February 2027 for Level 2, where we deepen your expertise in holistic food preparation, building upon your transformative journey from Level 1.
Level 1: Raw Food Chef Certificate Program
Early bird pricing Until June 30th
Private Room ($3333 - Reg Price $3999)
Shared Room ($2999 - reg. Price $3550)
payment plans available
LEVEL 1: Raw Food Chef Certification Retreat
What's Included in Your Experience?
- Airport TransferÂ
- 15 nights accommodation in a private resortÂ
- All meals included, meticulously curated for your culinary journeyÂ
- Embroidered Personalized ApronÂ
- Culinary Project Support for hands-on applicationÂ
- Holistic Nutrition Classes to deepen your understandingÂ
- Daily morning yoga, movement, and meditation facilitated by Special Guests for holistic well-beingÂ
- Instructional Plant labs for practical learningÂ
- Chocolate Tour and Tasting for a delightful experience
- Breathwork Experience for holistic wellnessÂ
- and so much more.Â
Our trainings are for...
 the stay-at-home mom
 the nutritionist
 the Chinese medicine doctor
 the new retiree
 the red seal chef
 the professional athlete
 those looking for a new career
 those looking to enhance their nutrition intake
 the fresh out of high school
 The seasoned entrepreneurÂ
… and many more. All these types of people have taken Pachavega’s Raw Food Chef Certification Course.
What we have in common is a desire to create healthy whole food recipes for our families, loved ones, clients and ourselves. We want to know how to help our body do what is designed to do, heal itself.
This course offers an in-depth study into a whole foods, plant-based lifestyle as a means to heal your body and ignite your spirit of adventure and passion to get you into the kitchen and experiment and in turn, improve your health and wellbeing for life.
You will Make Simple as well as Gourmet Recipes
All of our recipes are made with gluten-free, plant-based ingredients that are designed by nature to build health
What's it like to be a Raw Food Chef with Pachavega?
PACHAVEGA PLANT-BASED CULINARY SCHOOL NICARAGUA
- Dive into the health benefits of the food that fuels us
- Train in valuable basic, intermediate, and advanced kitchen skills
- Master the art and intricacies of flavor balancing
- Discover how to creatively sauce, plate and present striking dishes
- Create nutritional powerhouse meals and culinary masterpieces that anyone from age 0 to 99 is bound to enjoy and benefit from
- Learn the art of effective menu construction and design
- Acquire a compassion-centered approach to nutrition that supports individual needs and goals
- Utilize your nutrition and culinary knowledge and skills as the foundation of a holistic wellness lifestyle
- Turn your newfound-insights and mastery into a revenue-generating venture
- Have an encouraging feedback and support system from Pachavega educators and students
LEVEL 1: Raw Food Chef Certification Retreat
Level 1: Raw Food Chef Certificate Program
Early bird pricing Until June 30th
Private Room ($3333)
Shared Room ($2999)
payment plans available
Kind Words about our Courses
What our graduates are saying about us!
Pachavega's Raw Food Chef Certification Course dispelled the myths of living foods prep and lifestyle. It’s not just what you eat, but how nutrition can influence your physical and emotional state that truly matters. Danielle Arsenault is a passionate and inspiring teacher who has infused this desire to live life to its fullest in me and many others.
This is a practical course that teaches you not only how to make amazing healthful food, but teaches you the science of why we would eat this way. The way the course is structured really heps to maximize the time for optimum absorption of the information. I have learned skills here that I will use for the rest of my life. Thank you Danielle for creating this inspirational course!
Before coming to Pachavega I had been transitioning to plant-based of life. It was a slow process because I wanted to do it responsibly, nutritionally. Taking this course not only jump started the process, it accelerated the process by giving me tools and education to know how to eat a nutrient dense menu. Totally worth every penny and an investment in myself from a health perspective!
Introducing Your Teacher...
Danielle Arsenault, founder of Pachavega Living Foods Education, is a passionate Raw Food Chef and Plant Based Nutrition Educator. In 2011 a near-death rock climbing accident changed her relationship with the world and life as she knew it. It gave her the realization that we are truly blessed to be alive. After she healed her body with food, she made it her life’s purpose to educate the world about the healing power of plant-based whole foods and a healthy lifestyle rooted in compassion for the planet.Â
Danielle is a professional educator, internationally renowned chef, published author of 7 cookbooks and an award-winning vegan influencer. She is a best-selling co-author and has been on the TedX stage. She has also been featured in over 40 podcasts, 50+ magazine articles, several online summit series and catered over 50 retreats, including almost 30 in-person Raw Food Chef Certification Trainings.
Her professional career includes a stint as a college professor, a Raw Food Chef and Nutrition Consultant at a tropical wellness resort and designing and teaching over 350 students, online and in-person, through her Online Culinary Arts Institute and in-person Holistic Wellness Retreats. She lives on the island of Ometepe, Nicaragua and frequently donates her time and passion to teach healthy cooking skills within her local community.
As Seen In:
Location and Accommodation
Ometepe island. nicaragua
2025 + 2026 Programs will be held at Om Island Retreats.
The Pachavega Plant-Based Culinary School is located on the beautiful island of Ometepe, Nicaragua, at La Vida Bonita. This holistic wellness center is currently under creative construction. The land was purchased in 2024, with plans for our dream kitchen still in the works. We are excited to begin hosting Pachavega in-person programs in 2027.
You enjoy what we do and wanna stay up to date with our new products, contents & promotions?
We encourage you to follow us on Instagram by clicking this link here.
By following this link, You can also find our new E-book Tropical Treats & Savory Eats, it contains 3 days of nourishing raw vegan meals from the tropics.
