Author Q&A With Robin Keuneke
Robin Keuneke is a natural foods chef, fine artist, and former food editor for Total Health Magazine. She is the author of The Iberian Table: Healthy Cooking Secrets from the Land of Longevity, Total Breast Health: Power Foods for Protection and Wellness- a Publisher’s Weekly Best Boo k of the Year and coauthor of The Detox Revolution. With a passion for healthful eating, longevity, and the Spanish Mediterranean diet, Robin brings a unique perspective that blends culinary expertise, nutrition science, and cultural storytelling. As she continues to share her knowledge through books and thought leadership, her role as a trusted voice in health-conscious cooking is amplified. Meet Robin…
You are an author, but what is your day job? I run my own small publishing house. In addition to writing, since The Iberian Table has been released, I have dealt with marketing, social media, and issues that need to be addressed, such as books arriving at my distributors with the wrong Barcode/price on the cover. I cannot wait to return to writing! My fourth book is Basque to Barcelona! Stories Along the Way is a collection of stories centered around culinary topics.
Did you always want to be an author? I have always wanted to paint and write. Despite my less-than inspiring high school English teacher, I was enraptured with English composition, which blossomed more as time passed. (Getting away from her was a step towards literary liberty. I wished I had saved my essays for which she lacked approbation, but when we are young, we lack confidence.) My talented literary mother, Nancy Grant, was a devout reader, so I grew up with books. Mother had a career in art and design. She began taking me to after-school painting classes when I was twelve, instilling in me a life-long passion for painting. I also had an aunt who painted and exhibited throughout her life. So, my love for painting and drawing is in my DNA. My paintings are displayed on my Facebook page, and my artwork is exhibited in NYC and London.
What is your most recent book, and what inspired you to write it? Ironically, as I was updating my first book, Total Breast Health: Power Foods for Protection and Wellness, I had a particularly illuminating visit to Spain. There are 
many legends in Spain, and they are often tied to culinary traditions. I haven’t been able to stop writing about culture, cooking, and legends since. On that plane ride home, after that particular trip, I began making notes in my Moleskin that became The Iberian Table.
How do you feel your book uplifts those who read it? The Iberian Table uplifts. This is not only for reasons related to ground-breaking nutritional information that, until my book, has remained ‘hidden’ but also because the spirit of Spain provides energy that directly translates into this book. Uplifting energy. On this topic, consider the following: Dr. Peter Dodds, a language researcher, launched a study at the University of North Carolina, overviewing the 20 most spoken languages of the world. Dr. Dodds found more words for joy and happiness in Spanish and fewer words for fighting and crying than in any other language. So the Spanish have primal joy ‘baked into’ ’their basic language. I also found that chefs share and are open in Spain. Having traveled to many places worldwide, I immediately experienced the openness to share culinary ‘secrets’ in Spain. Hence, recipes in The Iberian Table reflect this depth, range, and generosity.
What are you most excited about regarding this book? This twelve-year project is complete! Whew. I am pleased that my bibliography is so rich, underscoring research that shows that the Spanish are among the longest-living people in the world. In addition, I worked hard on the details to help readers understand how to shop, cook, and eat like the Spanish – who have one of the longest lifespans in the world. I am pleased that my recipes are varied and delicious – I developed a menu plan that helps readers by explaining how to build a Spanish Pantry. My Spanish cheese chart and two librarian-created indices, one general and the second for recipes and ingredients, make it easy for readers to find details. I like this. In addition, my Resource Guide includes information on travel, culture (such as films and literature), and Spanish wine. After twelve devoted years, I am delighted that The Iberian Table is a complete book.
How did writing a book help your career take off? Writing this 3rd book (which I think has more general, lasting appeal than my first two) has helped my work be discovered. The Iberian Table was released in the fall of 2024 – by now, people are reading it from cover to cover and are in touch with me to tell me how much they love it. It is a thrill.
Advice to people who want to succeed in my industry: If you create healthy recipes, stick with them. The world needs better health. Start small. Keep a detailed journal of your cooking creations and collect nutritional data. Study cookbook authors with whom you feel a kinship. A caveat. I’m into clarity and form, so please look towards brilliant cookbook authors from the past. Dive deep into classics such as Richard Olney and Alice Waters. Julia Childs. Writing a great recipe is an art.
Handling “setbacks and criticism”. This is a must for authors! Any troll can take out their ‘bad day’ in a review about your precious book. Get ready. Consider the following. As I said, this book took over ten years to write. Early in The Iberian Table, I include recipes in a memoir section. These recipes are written informally, as though the reader is with me while we browse through one of Spain’s most fabulous green markets. It is a fun, colorful narrative. The recipes are short and quick cooking and feature the foods we look at in the market. Later, in Part Two, Chapter Ten, “¡Vamos! Let’s Cook! “ I include over 100 recipes in conventional format, with ingredients listed at the beginning of each recipe. There is no narrative, just an abundance of delightful, tasty recipes organized with clarity. Yet a couple of Amazon readers who only looked through the book’s first part bashed it and gave it one star, bringing my rating down, complaining that my “recipes don’t list ingredients” and that the recipes “are not presented in conventional format”. Even though these two reviewers clearly did not even look through my book, they did take time to leave “One Star’ reviews. Thankfully, however, those who read the book rated it highly. The Iberian Table is rated very highly on Amazon, and most reviews are glowing. So get in front of this. Use social media to connect with followers through your storytelling and warm, authentic voice. You might build interested, loyal followers who might purchase your book and leave you a review.
Being an author today is like running a business. Make sure you have talented people helping you and believing in you and your book! Keep your word. Deliver. Your colleagues work on your behalf. Whatever you agree to with people who support you – such as a publicist or book doula- Deliver. Do your best. Put your authentic self into social media… Reveal who you are. I am meeting other writers, chefs, poets, and philosophers. Explore your passions. Social media can connect and educate. I joined ‘Emily Dickinson Daily’ on Facebook and start my day with these folks. I love it. Dickinson’s poetry has helped me become freer as a writer. Just a few weeks ago, I joined the Emily Dickinson International Society. Oh. One last comment- I am sure my grumpy high school English teacher would have disapproved of Emily Dickinson’s quirky poetry. Those pesky dashes!
It’s easy to be accountable when you love what you do and the people you work with.
How do you structure your day? Joy propels. I look at my social media in the mornings and keep in touch with followers. I check in with people who work on my behalf- how is my latest cooking demo going? How can I add something fresh to my personal Facebook? Also, in the morning, my personal FB is meaningful to update. As I have indicated, I am nourished by FB. After a morning routine of interacting on social media, I swim or do light Pilates. Lunch and reading come next. I read something I revel in – poetry, biography, cooking. Writing time these days is rare because the interest in my book is strong, but I am grateful. And I know I will return to my short story manuscript when the excitement over The Iberian Table simmers down. So, in the late morning, I interact for interviews and weigh in as an expert for a couple of educational groups that have invited me to join as an advisor in culinary/nutrition. We are in the planning stages for the Basque and Catalan projects, and educational initiatives will come to fruition in the coming months. I might put a quick pot of soup together in the late morning or develop a new recipe in winter. Lamb Chili with garbanzo beans… is haunting me. I must cook this soon and memorialize the new recipe in my journal.
What is most fulfilling in your career? I love knowing my ideas are being shared with others through my books and recipes and that my work as a leader of ideas will make a difference. The Iberian Table reveals nutrition’s best-kept secret.
What book uplifts me? The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson has been my favorite for years. She wrote almost 2,000 poems. More than a poet, Dickinson was a genius on par with Shakespeare. In addition to being highly creative and fuel for any aspiring writer, her work expresses modernist philosophy, identifying events of ‘being ‘that could “remove inherited concepts and return her to powerful pre-reflective experience”. I want my words to express my pre-reflective experience! To maintain that intangible, direct experience in my writing and my painting is what I live for.
Connect with Robin and learn more about her journey and books via her website.
