I was five when I opened one of my mother’s Time-Life books and saw that there were other places, other ways of life. It was a book about India, and I suppose that was the beginning of the journey I want to share with you. Like most journeys of the heart and soul, my blog won’t follow a mapped route. This is not a food blog in the typical sense. Here I will offer you a potpourri of subjects related to food which I see as a driving force for everything. My discourse will zigzag from recipes and entertainment to travel, health, and personal insights. Food’s effect on our self-image is only the beginning: it also has the power to sustain us or slowly poison us, make us glad or sad — even start and end wars.
I never imagined I would become so enamored with food that I would have to tell the world about it. I was the skinny kid who ate candy bars and wasn’t hungry for dinner. I was the wife who gained 65 pounds while pregnant and, after I regained my skinny self, wrote a cookbook for people who wanted to lose weight. (It sold over a million copies!) A single mother of twins and the owner of a Los Angeles public relations firm, I was always too busy to think of food and on some occasions even forgot to eat. But when my beloved daughter grew into a total foodie who knew all the best restaurants, coffeehouses, and farmers’ markets, I began to tag along, and before I knew it, I too was hooked. Now I can taste the difference between familiar brands of olive oil and those fresh from California’s Ojai Valley farms. I learned how to make my own nut milks — and they’re beyond delicious. I discovered how much joy one can get from food — and how much one can give!
Ordinarily, I’m a constantly worried mother, always multitasking and a bit frazzled. My best friend since childhood is Ellen, who is also a foodie, and another bestie is Wendy, a psychologist (named after the character in Peter Pan) who rarely takes the time to cook or eat. Recently, I had three benign tumors removed from my parathyroid glands, and my energy hasn’t been the same. But the minute I start to cook, I feel at home and grounded, purposeful. My kitchen became the place where I nurtured myself as I nurtured family and friends. With a growing sense of mastery, I would recreate the dishes I had sampled in favorite restaurants and around the world. At one point, Ellen and I would make 25 dishes from scratch for 12 diverse members that constituted our experimental Around the World Dinner Club, where people told their stories in the warm comfort of a shared table. I have come to realize that ‘breaking bread’ with someone is really a holy experience of intimate sharing. It is an intercultural connection that transcends the need for a common language — the human experience of sharing meals is the common language. Across the world, the custom of offering a stranger food, or a cup of tea, is an extension of friendship. Food can be the ultimate olive branch, or the most endearing form of nurturing.
Beyond our personal health, well-being and relationships, food impacts culture, politics, business, commerce, global health, climate change, psychology, love and friendship, religion, entertainment, education, fashion, photography, cooking, and scientific experimentation. In this blog, I will share the joys and mysteries of food in more ways than you might expect.
What we can create in the kitchen, and how far we can go in this world, is limited only by our imagination and daring. Gather your imagination, your kitchen tools and spices, and leave your boundaries behind as I walk you through foreign lands, show you how to recreate their quintessential dishes, and tell you a bit about their culture. I hope you will savor every moment and share your own experiences. So many pleasures of life come to us through exploring the world and gaining new perspectives. The world can live in that small space called your kitchen, where the elements of your pantry come to life in delectable ways, in something you create and can be proud of.
Namaste,
Sherry Plum
10 Comments
Wow, beautiful site. Great stories and recipes!
Thank you! I’m so glad you think so! Keep checking back for new additions!
I love this blog! It’s more than a food blog, it is a walk around the world. It’s beautiful.
Wow, thank you! Yes, it’s been a long road! So glad you you love it! Thank you so much!
I can’t believe all the amazing work you put into this. It’s amazing.
Thank you so much. I appreciate your appreciation for it!
This is my go-to site from now on. I’ve made a couple of the recipes and they are fantastic!
Thank you! Which recipes did you make? Also, I have several more I will be posting soon. Stay tuned!
This is a beautiful blog. It inspired me to begin cooking once again. I’m single and stopped cooking because I live alone. I grabbed ready-made meals. After trying some of your recipes, I am excited to continue cooking again. They were delicious. Thank you!
Thank you! I’m glad you like it and that it was an inspiration to you to begin cooking again! I am always up for a homemade meal over ready-made. I hope I will continue to inspire you. New recipes coming up soon, so please always check back!