The Joy of Cooking

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 The thing I loved most about Elizabeth Perez’s book, Religion In the Kitchen, was how she talked about cooking – and especially cooking in the home – can connect us. My mom is an amazing baker, and I remember some of my joyous moments were spent in the kitchen with us. She taught me all the best ways to cook and in all the best ways. I learned how to be organized from being organized in the kitchen, how to care about if you’re doing too much or too little, and, most recently, how to trust your gut. 


I’d say that gift-giving is my love language, but my artistic family always says that there is no greater gift than the one you make yourself. Food, I feel, is such a fulfilling gift to give my friends and family. I will prepare for weeks just to make something nice for people. I love cooking to the best of my ability too. I care about presentation, having fresh ingredients, and making something tasty but also good for your body and soul.  


Although my family is not religious, we celebrate an agnostic’s Christmas, and what I look forward to most of all are the treats I will bake with my mom and my sister. Those types of food that you’re not allowed to have until this specific time of the year are the best kinds. It helps me remember the importance of the food but also the time I spend with my family. I know others have this with their own religious celebrations as well, and it is often the food that makes the celebration what it is.


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