I was born and raised on Canada’s beautiful west coast in a French-speaking home. After completing a bachelor’s degree in anthropology at the University of Victoria, I worked as a translator, foreign language tutor and pronunciation coach until my passion for cooking spilled over into my professional hours, eclipsing language as my area of expertise. I put my evolving skills to work as a personal chef, designing and cooking weekly menus for clients with varying dietary needs, and giving cooking classes to share what I was learning in the kitchen. I now work intermittently for a luxury rehabilitation centre, where I can challenge my creative side every day to produce exquisite menus for VIP clients.

Stories

My fascination with cooking comes from a consideration of food at the intersection of culture and environment: the particular ingenuity of human beings to transform the raw materials of nature into creations that transcend the basic need cooking aims to satisfy. Food tells fascinating stories of power, politics and migration. More intimately, it tells multifaceted stories of community, belonging, nurture and love. I enjoy telling stories with food and telling stories through food. In fact, it is not just a joy but a driving force behind my creativity in the kitchen. Food contains many layers of meaning, whether personal, cultural or historical and relating to them can transform the act of eating from one of sustenance to one of communion with something greater. I love seeing how narratives enhance my guests’ experience and satisfaction with the food they eat.

Senses & Creativity

Part of my enjoyment in the kitchen comes from the tangible sensations that arise from working directly with the products of nature’s bounty—painting, as it were, not just with colours and textures, but also with smells, sounds, tastes and temperatures. The purple sheen of a freshly-picked eggplant. The smell toasted cumin being ground in a mortar. The satisfying crackle of a noodle dropped in hot oil. The sensory pleasures of the herb garden. I also love working with my hands, enjoying the simple ritual of slicing onions and often preferring the simplicity and sensuality of the mortar and pestle over the mechanical blades of the food processor.

Health & Joy

I’ve long used food and its preparation to fulfill a need for increased health and well-being. Having struggled with autoimmune and gut disorders since I was a child, my relationship with food was for a long time a complicated and conflicted one. In the end, I chose to see food as the solution instead of the problem, embracing food choices that made me feel good in my body as well as happy at the table. I found healing and solace in the act of cooking itself, and satisfaction in sharing my creations with others. From the embodied act of chopping, slicing and mixing and the nurturing act of feeding others, to the social communion of sharing a meal at a table together and the importance of finding a source of nourishment that goes beyond mere nutrition, I’ve made food my pleasure and my pharmacy.