This site is first of all about food. Real food that gives us energy, satisfaction, joy, color. Food that comes out of wild imagination, combined with dancing taste buds. Food that brings together families, around a small or big table. Food inspired by old but adapted to new. Food that is nourishment for the soul, without being punishment for the body. Food made with passion for fresh, seasonal, local, sustainable ingredients. Food which will not lead to waste nor frustration, but to balance and fulfillment.
But with a twist. The recipes you will find are easy to do and combine ingredients that almost every “home chef” knows. Sometimes I follow original recipes but other times I love to play with ingredients, mix sweet with salty, crunchy with smooth, fruits with meats. I will share dishes that will impress family and guests but without needing restaurant skills, which I also don’t possess.
I come from Transylvania, I am in love with pure Transylvanian and Romanian food, but include in my dishes influences from Hungarian, Italian, Spanish, French, Greek, British, Asian, Middle Eastern, American cuisines. Maybe even more. The culinary world map, in my vision, has no boundaries. We are all connected through love for food, similar recipes and ingredients, culinary customs which have different names, but in essence, are so alike.
That’s the pillar of my life. That’s what I apply when cooking and eating. Eliminate waste, better consume less food but good quality. Get to know your body, nourish it, help it stay fit, healthy, happy. Find what brings you balance and comfort through food and stick to it.
Creating pleasure through food, even though the public is your family, comes out of pure passion. The act of eating should not be mechanical, it should be a ritual of bringing good quality food at the table, taking time to enjoy and digest it, sharing it with family, old and new friends. For me, cooking with passion means to take a step back, find out what people near you enjoy and create around their desires.
I am Raluca (32 y o), extremely shy when it comes to public exposure but bold when it comes to food, flavors and culinary experiments. My family: Theo, my husband, the love of my life and my guidance, the one that filled all the cracks of my heart with trust, dreams and hope; Dominic and Tudor, the little people that bring color, challenge and huge joy in my life. The three of them are also known as “The Jury”. The Jury is tough, they rate my dishes according to Originality, Taste and Aspect. No worries, I don’t take it personally
It incorporates all of the above and many more, which you will discover in the recipes. It’s about the joy of cooking and sharing the food that comes out of your hands. It’s about taking time (I know, “we don’t have time”, but time is the treasure we all receive at birth and we are in debt to ourselves to use it wisely) to bring happiness on a plate, so, take a seat, on my table you will always find something zelidecious to eat!
So, what word comes through your head when you say “Zelidecious”?
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