Our power women

With passion, talent and her unmistakable style, Katja Baum not only won the 13th season of the popular Sat.1 cooking show “The Taste”, but also won the hearts of her community. As part of Alexander Herrmann's team, the Leipzig native prevailed against 21 competitors and impressed the celebrity jury with great taste experiences in spoon format. Her victory not only earned her the trophy and prize money, but also her own cookbook.

Despite her roots in a gastronomic family, Katja's parents advised her against pursuing a career in the kitchen. However, a car accident and an inspiring moment with Jamie Oliver on television led her to abandon her philosophy and German studies to devote herself entirely to the culinary arts.

Her journey took her to some of the most renowned places in gastronomy, including the restaurant of 3-star chef Juan Amador and the 3-star restaurant “Quince” in San Francisco. There, she was particularly influenced by the “farm-to-table” philosophy and a clear, purist approach: “Respect the product, make minimal changes and get the best out of it.”

After returning to Germany, Katja refocused her career. As a food stylist, initially at the magazine “essen&trinken” and self-employed since 2019, she combines her passion for aesthetics with her culinary expertise. "I learned from Juan Amador how fascinatingly precise and creative plating can be. That's what food styling is all about - presenting food in a way that appeals to the senses and arouses the viewer's curiosity."

At the same time, Katja was able to gain many loyal followers on Instagram in a very short space of time. The level of interaction and loyalty in her community is above average. "I firmly believe that people want to prepare something themselves instead of eating junk food. But they need recipes that are simple, quick and accessible. When someone writes to me to say that they have cooked one of my recipes, it confirms my conviction and that makes me deeply happy."

Katja impresses her fans and followers with her unique blend of wit and sensitivity. She impresses with her profound empathy, modesty and sharp mind, which underlines her clever and empathetic nature - qualities that her fans particularly appreciate. Incidentally, Katja also occasionally cooks pop ups and can be booked as a private chef or for cooking courses.

In her private life, Katja is planning to marry her fiancée Astrid and travel the world with her. “Travel and food - that's at the top of the list.” Professionally, she wants to continue to live out her creativity, be it through new content on Instagram or soon in front of the TV camera again. "I realized on ‘The Taste’ how much I enjoy cooking and entertaining at the same time. I really want to keep doing that. People enjoy watching and listening to me. Besides, there are still too few female TV chefs out there - that's not possible!"

Photo: Jorma Gottwald

There are people you meet not only with talent, but with heart, courage and a fire all of their own. Helena Gouveia is just such a person - and her cuisine is an expression of her personality: unconventional, cosmopolitan, honest and full of life.

Helena is no longer an insider tip in Hamburg. Her “Flottbeker Schmiede” is a place where small plates become big stories. Mediterranean tapas with a soul all of its own, a creative variety of flavors and an atmosphere that not only satisfies guests, but touches them. So it's no wonder that the Michelin Guide awarded her concept the Bib Gourmand - an honor for special cuisine with a fair price-performance ratio.

The remarkable thing is that Helena is self-taught. No traditional culinary training, no typical career path - but all the more dedication, curiosity, courage and hard work. Between cooking, children and career, she has worked everything out for herself. Her energy is infectious, her story inspiring. She proves that you can find your place in top gastronomy - even if you come from outside. Or precisely because of that.

She became known to a wider audience through her appearances on the Sat.1 cooking show “The Taste”, where she not only attracted attention with her dishes, but also with her positive, powerful charisma. Her way of cooking is intuitive, characterized by experience, taste and a large portion of creativity. She loves sharing, experimenting, the interplay of textures and flavors - and always serves up a bit of personality along the way.

What sets Helena apart is not just her talent, but her eye for the essentials: Enjoyment, closeness, joie de vivre. Her dishes are heartfelt - they tell of journeys, encounters, childhood memories and everyday moments that are made special by good food. She doesn't cook for show, but for people. And that's exactly what makes her so special.

Photo: Sat.1 / Jens Hartmann

Take trend-setting guest chefs, first-class products and exciting cooking techniques, bring them together in authentic restaurants and hotels run by hosts with a lot of passion - and you have the successful recipe for the SHGF, the Schleswig-Holstein Gourmet Festival! Germany's northernmost federal state also has plenty of culinary specialties to offer. Between September and April, exceptional culinary stars from Germany and abroad come to Schleswig-Holstein to present delicious and inspiring menus at a high level together with the teams of the member establishments.

The warm, outstanding, authentically soulful voice of the fantastic singer Sandy Edwards paired with the groovy piano playing of Matthias Lutz form the musical foundation, which enables their own interpretations of well-known soul classics, current titles, love songs and favorite songs. Music that warms and heats you up from the inside, performed by two great musicians.