The Empowered Kitchen

23/11/2025

There are still spots left for our retreats in 2026!

What if you could spend 5 days learning how to cook and eat like a French person?

Come reinvigorate yourself in France and find your zest for life again.

How does the following sound?

🌻Relaxing on the grounds of a Medieval manor in the French countryside

🥗Cooking healthy, delicious meals with amazing food produced by French farmers

👨🏻‍🌾Spending time in the kitchen with new friends making amazing dinners

🍷Exploring the local food and wine culture of this region of France

😍Getting a massage and going out to eat at one of the finest restaurants in Chartres

🐝Visiting local farms and tasting locally produced honey

This is just a little taste of what we’ll do on the French Country Farm & Foodie Retreat!

DATES in 2026 near Chartres, France.🥕👨🏽‍🍳🧀

🍷April 27th-May 1st
🇫🇷 June 8th-12th
🌻June 15th-19th
🍂Oct 12th-16th

If you answered YES to any of these questions, Apply NOW for our 5 day experience with a small group of fellow sustainable foodies in France.

A FEW SPOTS REMAIN! Book today to get your preferred room!

Hi, I am Katrina and I am committed to providing you the best experience possible.

Together we complete a series of cooking classes with a focus on fresh, local, seasonal foods and will provide a tour of this part of France that only a local could offer.

I am an American and married to a local beekeeper! 🍯 This means you’ll get to tour the farm, taste the honey and meet other locals in the food scene in and around Chartres.

DO SOMETHING JUST FOR YOU this year and book your retreat today!

🌻🌻🌻SEE YOU IN FRANCE!🌻🌻🌻

Katrina,
The Empowered Kitchen

20/11/2025

Come join me this Sunday, November 23rd for an online cooking class. ♥️

We'll make this delectable holiday tart! Yum! 😋 A Cranberry, Pear, & Frangipane Tart just in time for the festive season. 🤗🎄

Only €14 per Zoom screen, so invite friends and family to join you!

7:30 pm Paris time
1:30 pm Eastern US/ Canada
10:30 am Pacific US/ Canada

👩🏽‍🍳Link to register below in comments.

12/11/2025

Check out what this lady said about the French Culinary Retreat I half this past October. 🍂🧺🇫🇷
It was wonderful having her and all the other beautiful souls that attended the retreat.

It's so fulfilling to get to do this for my work. 🙏🏼👩🏼‍🍳😊

If you'd like to join us for a retreat in 2026, I have four retreats that still have spots available. ♥️

Book soon to get your preferred room!

Link in bio to the retreat website.

DM me with any questions. I'm always here. 🤗
Katrina

08/11/2025

Hey everyone ! 👩🏼‍🍳🤗 Your American chef in France here with an announcement of our next cooking class. 😋

Swedish Cardamom Buns! ♥️
Sunday, Nov 9th

7:30 pm Paris time
1:30 pm Eastern US/ Canada
10:30 am Pacific US/ Canada

I'd love to have you join us. This class requires making the dough ahead of time, but I walk you through it. Otherwise you can simply watch the class and make the buns later.
I always send out the recipe and recording.

Only €14 per Zoom screen and everyone in your household can join in the fun!

Register at the link below. 🥳♥️

12/10/2025

IMPORTANT: If you've tried to email me in the last 24 hours, please be patient. I'm having an issue with my email and domain. If your email bounced back, please contact me by private message on Facebook, or wait a few days while I fix this problem.

Thank you! Sorry for the inconvenience. Katrina

UPDATE: I've now fixed it, but if your email bounced back, please send it to me again.

11/10/2025

We had a fabulous time on our French culinary retreat in September. So many laughs! Everyone went away feeling like a little family. It was a wonderful group.

We still have a couple spots for this October 20th - 24th if you'd like to join us!
Contact me with a message or email at [email protected] ❤

Link to retreat details below. 🇫🇷🍷👩🏽‍🍳

18/09/2025

Had fun making a delicious chocolate and praline entremet the other day. 🌰🍫
Mmmm... If you come on one of our retreats here in France, you could taste this decadence in person.

We still have spots left for October! 🍂🍷🇫🇷 I'd love to have you join us!

Check the link in bio 🔗 to head to my website and learn more about the beautiful foodie retreats I organize here in the French countryside near Chartres. 🌻

09/09/2025

Join us for a very special edition of The Cooking Circle this weekend! We'll be making this beautiful French Pastry this Sunday, September 14th. 😋 It's called a Paris-Brest and is made with choux pastry and praline-flavored mousseline cream. Yum! 🇫🇷👩🏼‍🍳

Only €14 per Zoom screen to join!

♥️ Sign up at link below in bio. 🥐

7:30 pm Paris time
1:30 pm Eastern US/Canada
10:30 am Pacific US/Canada

09/09/2025

Join us for a very special edition of The Cooking Circle this weekend! We'll be making this beautiful French Pastry this Sunday, September 14th. 😋 It's called a Paris-Brest and is made with choux pastry and praline-flavored mousseline cream. Yum! 🇫🇷👩🏼‍🍳

Only €14 per Zoom screen to join!

♥️ Sign up at link below in comments.

7:30 pm Paris time
1:30 pm Eastern US/Canada
10:30 am Pacific US/Canada

06/09/2025

We still have spots left for this October! 🇫🇷🥰👨🏾‍🍳👩🏼‍🍳 Come join us on a fabulous retreat in the French countryside! You'll make tons of delicious food, get a massage, have some time to relax, and meet really fun new people from around the world!

Join us! Message me for more info, or email me at [email protected].

Retreat is from October 20th-24th. 🍂🍷

We'll drink lots of wine and have tons of fun!

Retreat details at link below.

Cheers, Katrina

26/08/2025

Important information for travelers to the European Union.

‼️ September 2025 update: The ETIAS fee is now set to €20

Non-EU visitors to Paris will face two new entry rules in 2025 and 2026.

𝟭 – 𝗘𝗘𝗦 (𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆/𝗘𝘅𝗶𝘁 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺)
Starts October 12, 2025. When you arrive at the border, you’ll give fingerprints and have a photo taken instead of getting a passport stamp. This happens at arrival — no forms, no fees, no advance application. Allow extra time, especially in the first months.

2 – 𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗦 (𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺)
Expected late 2026. This is an online travel pass you’ll need before boarding your flight. Cost: €20 (free for under 18s and over 70s). Valid for 3 years or until your passport expires. Without it, you can’t travel.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂
✅ Your passport is still required
✅ EES is automatic at the border
✅ ETIAS must be done online before your trip (once it launches)
✅ Apply early once ETIAS is available

Stay ahead of the changes — sign up for our newsletter and get important Paris travel updates sent straight to your inbox → https://bit.ly/Newsletter-SignUpHere

26/08/2025

Support all of our American farmers. Call your congress members to urge them to continue support of our young farmers.

In June, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and the USDA announced the plan to cancel $148.6 million in funding for young, beginning, LGBTQ+ farmers, and farmers of color. This includes cancelling contracts that support access to land, capital, and markets for underserved producers; education on environmental stewardship; and innovation in urban forestry.⁠

They claimed that these contracts "divert resources from American farmers." Join us in letting USDA know that and BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other “underserved producers” ARE American farmers by resharing these graphics and the hashtag !

And some good news: last week, a federal judge ordered the USDA to continue funding five grant awards that had been terminated by the Trump administration, including projects that were part of the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities initiative, the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP), and the Local Agriculture Market Program (LAMP).