Food Philosophy and Vision

Welcome to my food blog! You have come to a potpourri blog of the food world. You may get a little food science or cooking tips and tricks, a bit of nutritional education, a downright bles-sed cupcake recipe, or a mini philosophy discussion of food's impact on the soul (see below). Come for the food, and stay for the company. To explore recipes by dietary needs, click on your preferred label and have a look through the recipes! 

Over the years, as I have gained more confidence in cooking and baking, the ritual of kitchen-work has led to peace and freedom from distraction. I smile as I remember why I love cooking: hearing the knife chopping, the onion sizzling, smelling the garlic warming and the cinnamon baking, taste-testing bolognese or frosting, sensing the flour and butter mixing between my fingers, seeing the dough slowly rise... whatever recipe is in front of me, no matter how familiar, is an invitation to enlist all my senses and be grounded in that moment. 

I believe that food is an integral part of our spiritual, mental, and physical wellbeing. Nourishment brings people together. It sustains us, literally, day-to-day, and cooking can act as a sensory tool for healing. 

I want to make this blog a safe space, and I commit to post material in a way that is healing and healthy for each reader. For example, I will not list caloric information alongside recipes. 

In my teens, I focused heavily on calorie-counting and touted "a calorie is a calorie--make your choice for how you want to use them today, but you can only intake so much without gaining weight!". How wrong I was about the healthiness of that philosophy. When I began focusing on food as a blessed vessel for keeping my body healthy, the pressure of counting calories wore away. Each meal became a sacred moment of me caring for my body. And yes, when I ate my third homemade macaron in a row, I still revelled in that tasty truth. 

More than ever, it is difficult in our Western society to have a healthy relationship with food. Women, especially, are inundated with an implicit or explicit message that we are not thin enough, we are not worthy enough, we feel we need to control our bodies to ease anxieties or quell our low confidence in our abilities or the way we look. 

I believe--and I hope I still do as the years roll on--that I will continue to love my body through the aging process. I will care for it well. I will wear sunscreen and drink lots of water and maintain a healthy sleep routine and take regular walks. I trust that I am capable to make decisions for my body that will show it love--and I will fail--but I will fight every day to care well for this complex being that carries my soul and mind. When it comes to cooking and baking, I believe in using real, whole ingredients as often as possible. The size and shape of my figure will fluctuate, but I trust that a balance of diverse, minimally-processed foods will make it a healthy physique. 

So I invite you to join me in experiencing food through all your senses, to be gracious with your bounty (and body), and to treat your mind and body with love as you venture into new and delicious culinary feats.