Culinary nutrition in practice:
Take nutrition out of the office and into the kitchen and learn how to design experiences that inspire, scale, and transform.
Enrollment is officially open!
Take Nutrition Out of the Office and Into the Kitchen
This is for RDs and nutrition pros who know there’s a more effective, engaging, and evidence-based way to work with food and are ready to integrate cooking and culinary nutrition into their professional practice.
Research consistently shows that hands-on cooking and food engagement improve confidence, skills, dietary quality and long-term behavior change.
This program, eligible for 23 CEUs, shows you how to apply that research intentionally and professionally and turn culinary nutrition into impact-driven programs that go beyond the office and into real-world food experience.
Welcome to Culinary nutrition in practice
Whether you want to:
expand your impact beyond counseling sessions
teach cooking with confidence
design signature programs that go beyond classes
integrate culinary nutrition into clinical, community, corporate, or private practice
This is where that transformation begins…
Take a look inside the program!
You’ll be working through a thoughtfully designed, almost 200-page workbook that helps you translate what you’re learning into something you can actually apply in your work.
Inside, you’ll find:
Guided prompts to help you design your own culinary nutrition experience
Frameworks for structuring classes, demos, or coaching sessions
Tools for menu development and aligning food with your objectives
Real-world examples and case studies
Space to think, refine, and build something that’s uniquely yours
This is where your ideas start to take shape…
Food isn’t meant to be explained.
it’s meant to be experienced.
Nutrition education or coaching in an office alone can feel like something is missing, because it rarely engages people where dietary change actually happens: in the kitchen, with real food and in real contexts.
At the same time, research continues to reinforce what many RDs intuitively know:
Cooking skills increase dietary quality
Food experiences change behavior
Confidence with food builds self-efficacy and empowerment and helps clients move past a diet-mentality into something that’s sustainable, enjoyable, and nourishing
Culinary nutrition is an evidence-based evolution of how nutrition works in the real world.
This program is designed to help you integrate that evolution into your work.
The Program Experience
A 4-week immersive program with 4 live lectures and 2 live interactive labs designed to take you from idea to execution. You’ll learn, apply, and build your dream culinary nutrition experience in real time.
Here’s What You’ll Learn Inside the 4 Weeks:
Week 1:
Culinary Nutrition Foundations + Culinary Nutrition Techniques Lab
Understanding how food experiences drive behavior and how to leverage it in your work.
This week sets the philosophical and practical foundation for everything that follows. We explore why traditional nutrition education often falls short and how hands-on, food-centered experiences create meaningful behavior change.
You’ll learn :
The psychology of food experiences and how they influence behavior
Why cooking supports behavior change
Foundational culinary nutrition skills (knife skills, techniques, flavor balancing)
How to begin building confidence in the kitchen
Week 2:
Designing Your Culinary Nutrition Experience
Turning nutrition knowledge into intentional, repeatable food experiences.
This week focuses on design: how to move from ideas to programs that are structured, scalable, and aligned with your audience’s needs.
You’ll learn how to:
Choose program models that fit different audiences, settings, and goals
Use simple tools to design programs with intention and clarity
Translate nutrition guidance into engaging, food-forward experiences people actually remember
Build a cohesive menu aligned with your objectives
Week 3:
Pricing, Marketing, and Real-World Application + Teaching Model Lab and Applied Practice
Positioning your work, pricing it confidently, and building demand
This week is about making your work visible—and viable. We focus on how to communicate the value of culinary nutrition in a way that is credible and sustainable.
You’ll learn how to:
Price food-driven programs across different settings (community, corporate, education, private practice)
Clarify your positioning and communicate your value with confidence
Fill seats, create momentum, and design programs people want to return to
Apply learnings from real-world culinary nutrition case studies
Week 4:
Integration and Experience Development
(self-paced)
Facilitating meaningful experiences and building long-term growth
The final week focuses on delivery, refinement, and long-term impact. We cover how to show up as a confident facilitator while continuously improving your programs over time.
You’ll learn how to:
Develop facilitation skills that create real engagement and connection
Troubleshoot challenges and adapt programs in real time
Use feedback, metrics, and reflection to strengthen future programs and expand your work
Final Project (optional)
Students will have the option to complete and get feedback on a final project that involves designing a complete culinary nutrition experience due two weeks after the class completes.
Design a complete culinary nutrition experience, including:
Target audience
Format + structure
Theme + objectives
Menu + recipes
Flow + timing
Pricing + marketing strategy
This is something you can implement, sell, or use immediately.
CEUs and Assessment
This certificate program is approved for 23 CEUs from the CDR!
To receive CEUs, participants must complete a 22-question multiple-choice assessment at the conclusion of the course.
4 answer options per question
Passing score: 80% or higher
Assesses both comprehension and application
Records maintained in accordance with CDR requirements
“I have been searching - for years!! - for someone like you to develop your Food School, and I’m so excited to learn from you!”
This program is about integration and evolution
Culinary Nutrition in Practice is designed for RDs who don’t want to abandon what they know but rather want to expand how they apply it.
Inside the program, you’ll learn how to:
Use cooking and food skills as professional tools
Translate nutrition science into food-based experiences
Design culinary nutrition programs that fit your setting
Facilitate food engagement with confidence and clarity
Build offerings that are evidence-informed, adaptable, and sustainable
You don’t have to be a chef. In fact, the kitchen needs more RDs!
In this program, I’ll share the tips, techniques, and ways of thinking I learned in culinary school so you can think like a chef, while showing up as an RD.
A growing body of research shows that cooking interventions:
Improve dietary quality
Increase self-efficacy around food
Support long-term behavior change
Enhance engagement in nutrition programs
Culinary Nutrition in Practice bridges that research with real-world application and gives you the skills and structure to put it into action.
Enrollment + Pricing
Culinary Nutrition in Practice —
April Cohort
What’s Included:
4 core modules
2 live, interactive labs -
Culinary Nutrition Techniques Lab (hands-on)
Teaching Model + Applied Practice Lab
Final project framework and feedback
Optional office hours
Summative assessment for CEUs (status currently pending)
Downloadable materials + resources
Lifetime access to course content
23 CEUs!
Limited spots due to the live lab format and live attendance is encouraged, but recordings will be available.
"Participating in Shauna McQueen's Food School was an invaluable experience! She thoroughly guided us step by step thru the process with beautifully inspiring and super informational slides, and a teaching style that was both clear and encouraging.
Her feedback was incredibly generous and creative—she truly listened, honored my ideas, and helped me see how to shape them into something stronger, more cohesive, and uniquely mine.
I would highly recommend Shauna's series of classes to any and all RDs who recognize that building culinary skills can deeply impact their clients' success."
- Linda, Food School Grad and RD
Hi there!
I’m Shauna McQueen, a registered dietitian, trained chef, educator, and yoga teacher with over a decade of experience working at the intersection of nutrition, food, and behavior change.
My work goes far beyond cooking classes. I’ve helped design and lead nutrition-focused food and wellness programs in corporate settings - including work with companies like Spotify and Barclays where food wasn’t just fuel, but part of a larger strategy to support wellbeing at scale.
Food School grew out of this integrated approach. Here, I teach nutrition professionals how to apply culinary nutrition in real-world settings combining practical cooking skills, program design, and mindful, evidence-informed frameworks that help food education truly land.
I truly believe that transformation doesn’t happen in an office.
It happens in the kitchen.
FAQS
Who is Food School for?
Food School is designed for:
Registered dietitians and nutrition professionals
Educators, program designers, and facilitators
Professionals working in community, corporate, healthcare, foodservice, or private practice settings
Whether you want to teach cooking classes, design food-driven programs, collaborate with brands, or expand your role beyond traditional nutrition counseling, Food School meets you where you are.
How is Food School different from other nutrition or culinary programs?
Most nutrition programs focus on what to recommend. Most culinary programs focus on how to cook.
Food School bridges the gap. It teaches you how to:
Translate nutrition science into food experiences
Design programs that fit people’s lifestyles, budgets, and and goals.
Communicate and position your work in a way that feels aligned and sustainable
This is about building a culinary nutrition practice..
Is this course eligible for CEUs?
Yes! It has been approved by the CDR for 23 CEUs!
How long will I have access to the materials?
All course materials and resources will be available for download.
Is this only for people who want to teach cooking classes?
No. While cooking classes are one application, Food School supports a much broader range of work, including:
Workplace and corporate wellness programming
Community and nonprofit initiatives
Brand and product education
Consulting, curriculum development, and partnerships
Group programs, workshops, and experiential events
The skills you learn are transferable across many roles.
You’re in the right place if…
You already value food as more than fuel
You want to incorporate cooking and culinary nutrition thoughtfully
You want your work to reflect both evidence and lived experience
You sense that nutrition education can be more effective
You’re interested in designing programs, not just giving advice
You’re Inspired by a preventative, holistic approach
What You’ll Build Inside the Program:
Culinary Nutrition Foundations
Understanding how cooking, food skills, and behavior intersectApplied Culinary Skills
Flavor, technique, flexibility — and how to translate them simplyProgram Design & Integration
Creating culinary nutrition offerings that work in your roleProfessional Application
Adapting culinary nutrition for different audiences and settings
