Early Years..

I’m a 7 year old girl from Saudi Arabia, who’s German/Croat/Californian mum who moved to SA in the 70s to have 5 children (me being #4) and call Jeddah home, making my siblings and I earn our pocket money by choosing a CHORE to help around the house.

My cousins and friends- no one even heard of that word.

Of course- the options were limited to house work or tutoring my little brother, so I chose to be in charge of tea time.. My responsibilities included ensuring we had a lovely baked treats for the family to gather at tea time after school to talk about our days.. something healthy, tasty, and doesn’t require too much time.

Many stories to tell there.. from broken plates to laughs to tears to stomach aches from eating raw dough.. I even had an imaginary friend who “lived in the oven” to keep me entertained while fulfilling my duties.. (no joke) - but i’ll spare you the details and move onto 2024.. Today, I realise that having a chore at 7 taught me discipline, consistency, responsibility, and - in my case, KITCHEN SKILLS!

All which you NEED as a Chef and just - in LIFE.

THE CHEFFING

For some reason, the word chef doesn’t REALLY resonate with me.. I guess it’s because of how I feel about what I do - it’s a lot more than a career, it’s actually just who I am.

I see art everywhere, in nature, in living beings..

in the alchemy of matter..

Don’t worry, I won’t refer to myself as the alchemist..

Culinary artist, perhaps? that will do until I find (or you find) a more accurate term.

With my community and my country’s support- today, I get to travel the world, PROUDLY represent my country through cuisine, culture, art, and story telling..

Feel free to click on my SERVICES tab to learn more about that :)