ABOUT

Food is my love language.

Food was my very first expression of love. I was 6 years old and so desperately wanted to show my parents how much I loved and appreciated them. I had devoured the cookbook that I had been gifted a few months earlier. As I flipped through the pages and read through the recipes, I prepared each recipe in my mind and tasted each dish in my mouth, and dreamt of being able, one day, to prepare them on my own.

I was in awe of my Mother and Grandmother, and spent countless hours watching them wide-eyed and open-mouthed, as they created magic in our kitchen.  They stirred, and whisked, broiled and boiled, folded and kneaded,  combining seemingly nonessential ingredients together and turning them into something so incredibly tasteful, beautiful glorious and magic! 

I decided that I would no longer be a bystander on my parent’s 10th wedding anniversary. I woke up extra early, tiptoed downstairs and headed into the kitchen to make them breakfast. I remember the rush of excitement with my body. The sweat within my palms and the flitter flutter within my heart. I made some sort of an egg dish, with toast and chocolate chip cookies. I proudly put my finished product onto a serving platter and brought my exhibit of love upstairs and into their bedroom. I was beaming and felt incredibly proud. I can’t remember saying anything to them, but I knew that they would taste the love that I had infused within that breakfast: all the love tat I had within me: they would know it, feel it and taste it in every single bite. And this still stands true today. Whenever I prepare a meal, it is an offering: an expression of my love and representation of everything that I am.

My most memorable moments have been formed around the table. 

Most of my longest lasting and dear friendships were created around discussions of recipes and favorite foods.

I’ve lived or spent significant periods of time in over 17 cities around the globe and travelled to over 50. And in each culture, I’ve been invited and welcomed into countless homes, embraced, fed and nourished with food and love and stories. My experience is that people are generally generous and kind and welcoming and want to connect and share, irrespective of how little or much they have. I experienced this generosity in the farmlands in Tuscany to the Medinas of Morocco, to the bed and breakfasts in Montreal to the fisherman in Jamaica.

Food nourishes the body

Stories nourish the soul.

Both have great power to connect.  

Once Upon A Thyme is the place where food and stories meet. It is that space of nourishment and love and connection for you, for me, for us all. It is where I extend my love of food and stories beyond my table, holding that space for you to be completely nourished-body and soul. 

I am inspired by coking around the globe, taking bits from here and bits from there. I use fresh, organic whole foods, natural sweeteners, lots of herbs and yes, a massive dose of love.