Nicole and her husband, Claudio, live in a high-rise apartment in suburban Santiago. Join them for an evening of music, local wine, and Nicole's seasonal, fresh versions of traditional Chilean food. Nicole is a nutritionist and splits her time between private practice and teaching food chemistry at a university in Viña del Mar. Her professional focus on a healthy diet informs how she cooks at home: she prefers to cook light, seasonal versions of traditional Chilean food. Claudio and Nicole love to introduce guests to Santiago and share their insider tips on great places to see - and eat! - in the city. Nicole grew up in Iquique, a city in the far northern part of Chile, whose cuisine is influenced by neighboring Peru and Bolivia. For example, Nicole's Iquique-style ceviche uses more lemon than most versions found in Santiago, which results in fish that is more thoroughly cooked. She loves to experiment with quinoa, the quintessential Andean ingredient, and makes a quinoa risotto she calls "quinotto". In the winter, she often cooks soups, like crema de lenteja (cream of lentil soup) which takes its name from its silky texture, and cazuela (typical beef or chicken soup). She also serves traditional dishes like charquican (beef and vegetable with potatoes) and tomatican (tomato stew with beef and corn), sopiapillas con pebre (fried dough made with pumpkin served with a fresh tomato and onion salsa), pastel del choclo (corn pie), and the traditional asado (Chilean barbecue) with choripan (bread with sausage) and papas a la huancaina (an Iquique-style potato dish with a spicy mayonnaise sauce and nuts). For dessert, Nicole might make papaya stewed in a sweet syrup, or another typical Chilean sweet. If you book a cooking experience, Nicole will invite you into her small but tidy kitchen where she will teach you to make 2-3 Chilean dishes. You will cook together for about an hour, shucking corn for pastel de choclo (corn pie) or pureeing pumpkin for sopaipilla dough, before sitting down together for your meal. Nicole will have prepared additional dishes for your meal in advance. On Saturdays only, Nicole also offers an optional market tour add-on where she will take you to her weekly neighborhood feria (market) for a tour of her favorite vendors. Please note that Nicole has limited availability: she is available to host on Wednesday for dinner only; Friday for dinner only; Saturday for lunch or dinner; Sunday for lunch only.