And You Call Yourself a Chef!
Early Days at the café in Sweden
Well yes; I do! I call myself a chef, the pigtailed baker, and a very happy amateur! I love food! I love everything about food! I'm sort of obsessed with food! Which has been a blessing (nowadays) and curse (my sordid past). Food and I have a wonderful albeit complicated relationship. True confession time – I am a sober bulimic. This admission may have you scratching your head and wondering how a gal with an eating disorder wound up becoming a chef. It isn’t as surprising as it sounds; I simply traded in a bad food obsession for a good one.
In the past, eating was a dysfunctional outlet in which I allowed myself to "indulge" in the most extraordinary culinary delights. They went in – made me happy, for a moment – and then went out again. Sorrowful, but true. Food was my crutch, a friend (or rather foe) to lean on when times were tough and my own self-loathing was too much to handle. It would take years (a long and arduous journey with many twists and turns) for me to finally embrace food as a friend. I first discovered the beauty of food when my children were young; I could actually make them happy just by feeding them! They were my precious guinea pigs and subjected to their mother’s newfound fervor for cooking and baking. Not that they ever complained!
A fortunate stroke of serendipity opened the door to a whole new world of loving food. A café was for sale in our town and my daughter decided it would be the perfect place for me to test my culinary skills and create a cozy neighborhood hangout. It turned out to be a life saver as I was slipping back into old habits.The children were grown and I needed to rekindle my love affair with food. I also needed new guinea pigs! It was a perfect “food and me” symbiosis.
The café closed after four wonderful years. It didn’t make any money; but, it enriched my life and allowed me to discover my true calling as a chef.
As I divide my time between Sweden and New Mexico, I’ll be creating culinary delights and disasters on two continents. I want to share my experiences (and many recipes) with you – the ups and the downs -the fluffy and the flat souffles, if you will - from the popular Lemon Curd Cheesecake to the disgusting Cauliflower-Walnut Soup (which no one was willing to taste!) I’m not going to sugarcoat it (pardon the pun); I'm going to give it to you straight. Sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn't.
I'm not here to tell you anything you don't already know. There are so many "professional" chefs and experts out there and I would never be so bold as to assume I could "teach" anyone anything. I'm here to learn... and share... and experiment with YOU!
Laura Shapiro (culinary historian, New York Times) wrote recently about opening a domestic world of ordinary meals at home - something beyond the glamour of Instagram glamour - "the great unknown in the study of food."
Welcome to a glimpse of the ordinary.
Let's get inspired - together!