Sedona's Mii Amo Spa Offers A Journey of Taste

Now Mii amo launches its first cookbook, "A Journey of Taste," allowing readers to start on their own journey toward a healthier lifestyle by bringing the spa's cuisine and practices home.

Mii amo's food is not typical spa cuisine. It's nutritious, but also satisfying with no suggestion of deprivation. It uses the highest quality products available, including organically grown fruits and vegetables and quality meat and seafood and combines them in simple, easy-to-prepare recipes. It's low-fat, low-cholesterol, and low-carbohydrate, but it's high in taste and never prescriptive.

Executive Chef Steve Bernstein and Spa Chef Steve Sicinski have created what they call intelligent cuisine. "It's healthy and light, and most importantly, we know where our ingredients come from," says Bernstein. "If it's not coming from Mii amo's vegetable and herb garden, then we know the source and can ensure that it's as natural and fresh as possible."

"Because we're a luxury spa, we want to give our guests what they want," says Sicinski. "I don't want them to feel as if they're sacrificing, but I do want to re-educate them about how to eat healthier, lighter, and still be satisfied. As a result, people love the food here."

"A Journey of Taste" is a 145-page repository of more than 50 recipes most often requested by spa visitors. Guests might begin with a Mii amo Passage Smoothie and Blue Corn Waffles. For lunch there's Pan-Seared Ahi Tuna with Cellophane Noodles and Red Curry Broth, or Chicken Napoleon. Dinner possibilities include Herb-Crusted Colorado Lamb with Rosemary Jus and Grilled Salmon with Yukon Gold Potato Tart and Asparagus Asiago Cream. And for dessert, how does Tiramisu or Almond Ricotta Torte sound?

Tips from Mii amo's chefs help home cooks add flavor without adding fat. Suggested menus present ways to pair the recipes into great meals for everyday dining. And the "Day at the Spa" section offers readers a peek into Mii amo's "menu" of treatments, activities and daily practices. Even those who can't make the trip to Sedona will be able to incorporate Mii amo's delicious recipes into an overall lifestyle for physical health, emotional well-being and spiritual renewal.

The cookbook is available now at Mii amo (www.miiamo.com), and will be released by Chronicle Books this summer.

Mii amo, a destination spa at Enchantment Resort, was named "world's best destination spa" by Travel + Leisure readers. A Yuman word meaning "passage" or "journey," Mii amo promotes personal transformation through mind, body and spiritual therapies, which range from crystal facials to Watsu. The 24,000-square-foot spa in Sedona, Arizona, designed by Gluckman Mayner Architects, harmonizes with the Native American aesthetic and the surrounding red rock canyon, which are both integral to the Mii amo experience. The intimate Mii amo "spa village," which offers 3-, 4- and 7-night all-inclusive packages, features 14 guest rooms and two suites; 19 treatment rooms, many with views of the canyon, and five private outdoor treatment areas; indoor and outdoor pools; library; retail shop and an 80-seat restaurant.

Mii amo is the flagship brand in the Enchantment Group portfolio. This spa and resort development and management firm was the first in the industry to add a destination spa to a resort community, opening Mii amo in January 2001. A second Mii amo destination spa will open in Punta Mita, Mexico in 2010. Enchantment Group's holdings also include Enchantment Resort and Tides Inn in Virginia.