Cooking, as I mentioned, is what relaxes me most. Watching aquariums comes close, but cooking manages to take my mind off anything that’s worrying me at that moment (there is always something, tbh).
My favourite thing is to try and use leftovers and make a creative, new dish. Or to have someone with a limited diet come over and have to find a fun meal to offer. But I also like classics, and love reading old recipe books and realising how much our life has changed. Boyfriend and I have been reading “La Scienze in Cucina e L’arte di Mangiare Bene” (literally: Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well) by Pellegrino Artusi, a businessman turned cookbook writer who published the first Italian recipe book in 1891. The recipes are wonderfully mysterious, with ingredients that we can’t find the definition of online and procedures that would baffle the thriftiest cook. We read one or two recipes every evening in bed, and it’s one of the things I like best.
Here are the very simple recipes that I’ve made. Some are traditional, some are created by me, other are inspired by others. All have been tasted and approved by various friends and family members ^_^
All recipes
Basic Notions
Eggs
Pasta
Rice
Meat and Fish
Veggies and Soups
Deserts
…and the best sandwich I have ever eaten.