A taste of...

My passion for all things ‘food’ began when I was a child.  Food was an integral part of my childhood, we (my sister and I) were taught to ‘try everything once’ - turning your nose up at food was not allowed until you tried it.  My parents were both experimental eaters so this rule encompassed a whole host of interesting things.
 
A bit of my families ‘food history’:  My father grew up in America with a mother who would rather spend her time outdoors than in the kitchen and a father who would (bless him) burn the house down if he attempted dinner for the family.  It was only when he moved to Canada he harnessed a true appreciation for food – fruit and vegetables that came out of the ground and not a can for example.  My Mom, on the other hand grew up the eldest of 6 in a busy Italian/Norwegian household so was cooking and helping out in a kitchen that was the centre of the home from the time she could hold a mixing spoon.  She would tell me stories when I was little about how she’d help her mom make lunches for everyone and they’d have a proper assembly line in order to get all the sandwiches made.  Both of my grandparents on my Mom’s side are massive food enthusiasts and it wouldn’t be unusual for us to talk about what we were having for dinner when we were making breakfast.

My passion for food came from spending much of my youth at my Mom’s and Grandmothers knee learning to cook family recipes and watching in awe as they created feasts for the family, the love they pour into their food was nothing short of inspiring.  Mesmerised by the smells, sounds and tastes of all the treats coming out of the kitchen the food bug bit me at an early age.

As a child food was always an obsession of mine, my favourite channel growing up wasn’t music videos, sitcoms or movies, it was the food channel…I could watch it for hours on end infatuated with the creations of celebrity chefs.  I would spend entire weekends in the kitchen (with my parents supervision) creating my own delicacies and making plenty of mistakes along the way.

Me and my Dad making Pizza

Like many people I have food associations to some of my best and most cherished childhood memories.  I can tell you exactly how a churro tastes when waiting in line for the Haunted House at Disney Land, or how my Grandmothers spaghetti sauce smells when you come in from playing in the snow, or how amazing a blue-bubblegum ice cream cone tastes when your lips are salty from swimming in the sea.

Growing up on the West Coast of Canada I was exposed to many culinary delights at a young age.  Going to Vancouver for weekends filled with exciting food experiences, trolling the markets and learning how to pick out the best food – visiting the ‘noodle lady’ for the freshest rice noodles and plugging my nose in the shop that had all the dehydrated mushrooms and fish.  Watching fudge be made on cold shiny marble, and plunging my hands in icy water to help pick out the best mussels….these are moments that sealed my love for all things ‘food’.

Going out for Dim Sum and sitting at the table for hours as trays were wheeled around, listening to the clicking of chopsticks (and figuring out how to use my own!) learning what the names of the glistening dumplings were, watching in awe as the lids of the bamboo steamers were lifted.  Spending nights at the Sushi bar admiring the knife skills of the chef and then going home and trying to do it myself….my early food experiences were vast and varied – I couldn’t ask for more.

As I grew older and grown up life decisions were being made I was coaxed and persuaded to go to culinary school but always knew in my heart that being a chef wasn’t for me…I loved cooking, and loved feeding people but was cautious of making my hobby my career.  So I continued to cook for fun, and went down the marketing route to pay the bills.

My decision to start this blog is to share my food story, things I learn and love, and hope to encourage others to share theirs.
 
The purpose of A taste of… is for me to document my food journey, to share cookbooks I love, restaurants that make me salivate, wine that quenches my thirst, recipes that fail, recipes that triumph, links to other fabulous online finds and fun new (or old!) kitchen gadgets.  As well as my quest to perfect classic British food and my husbands’ childhood favourites, as well as my family heritage recipes so when I have children they have a well rounded food history from both their parents’ heritage.

I hope you enjoy reading A taste of…

ax