About

 (Für die deutsche Version hier klicken / click here for the German version)

Food

I started this blog to share recipes with friends and family, and to remember my own creations that often come together spontaneously – and are forgotten in the same fashion. I wanted to document traditional recipes & remedies of different cultures and learn how to make pantry basics from scratch. Soon I realised, that just cooking & writing about food was not what sparked my passion.

Yes, I love fresh produce, trying different cuisines just as much as all foodies do … but what really puts meaning into dealing with food is the connective role it plays:

Food connects us to

1. The landscape
2. The season
3. The culture
4. The people around us
5. Ourselves

Mythology

Upon exploring I found that all these things are reflected in stories, lore and myths we tell each other as well! Of course not every fairytale revolves around food (although it quite often plays an important role), and not every food seems to have its fairytale (but often it does!). Yet, these stories of the past deal with elements of nature too – landscape, seasons, culture, people and the self.

While today we think of these things as children’s play and old wive’s tales, the ancients saw them as a means to explore the human psyche, just as much as a way to understand natural forces. Human characteristics and shapes were attributed to nature phenomenons, animals, plants, landscapes, the seasons, the weather, the soil, human notions and so on … often taking on the shape of deities and being worshipped this way.

You’ve probably heard about gods like Poseidon (the god of the sea), Aphrodite (the goddess of love), The Wild Hunt (representing the storms and cold of winter), Anansi (the spider god), The Percht (representing the mountains and the sun), or fairies and dwarves (the “spirits” of flowers, herbs, metal and stone) … the list is endless.

When we see deities as personified aspects of nature, that humans worshipped in the past but have somehow lost on the way, we understand that the old stories are meant for grown-ups. I feel that these animistic beliefs, this sense of belonging and engagement between humans and the earth, are what is lacking in our relation to nature.

I am not suggesting that you worship a deity, tend to an altar or make sacrifices to a god or goddess (unless you dig it). But maybe these stories and imaginations of nature as something sacred can help us become re-enchanted with our earth.

We can use our daily necessity of eating as a way to connect back to landscape, season, culture, people and ourselves – through the stories we tell each other, through sharing food with loved ones and enjoying the natural turning of cycles through the foods that are brought forth.

Libations & Painting

My weekly libations consist of cooking & painting for and writing about those old personifications of nature aspects, exploring food lore and sharing seasonal recipes and remedies that will hopefully prove delicious, helpful and fun for you. I also hope that my love for this earth and all its innate magic can be transmitted through these articles.