Ariana Bundy

Ariana Bundy was brought up in New York, London, Switzerland and Paris. She inherited her love of food and cooking from her grandparents - who grew cherries, plums, apricots, apples, wheat and barley, bred sheep and goats for dairy, and had beautiful vineyards producing prized grapes - and from her father, who owned the first fine-dining French restaurant in Iran and later in Beverly Hills.

Ariana was Head Pastry Chef for the Mondrian Hotel in LA. Graduate of Le Cordon Bleu and Le Notre in Paris, she trained at Fauchon Patisserie and attended the European Business School in London. She has cooked for celebrities such as Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman, President Clinton, Brad Pitt and Madonna to name a few.

Her latest book 'Pomegranates and Roses: My Persian Family Recipes' (Simon & Schuster UK) won an award at the Gourmand Cookbook Awards in 2012 and was shortlisted as the Best Cookery Book at the Writer's Guild Awards in 2013. In her beautiful part cookbook part culinary memoir, Ariana pays tribute to the rich heritage, cultural and culinary, that has shaped her approach to life, cooking, and eating. Her books have been featured in such magazines such as BBC Good Food, Food & Travel UK, Conde Nast's House & Garden, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping, Food & Wine Magazine, The Irish Examiner, House & Home UK, Financial Times and the Sunday Telegraph. Ariana has appeared on TV shows such as the BBC's Good Food Live, Sky's Taste, Euronews, FOX and Top Billing.

She is also the author of 'Sweet Alternative' the first ever gluten-, dairy- and soy-free dessert cookbook (Conran-Octopus UK) written in 2005 due to her family's and her own food intolerances.