The warming aroma of fresh garlic and onion in a robust extra-virgin olive oil wafting through the air; the sound of tender chicken breast sizzling in the pan; the feeling of accomplishment that comes after pulling out a freshly baked good from the oven; the experience of sharing a meal around the table with your loved ones; the melt-in-your-mouth flavors of crispy roasted vegetables paired with a bright and flavorful pesto.
This is the type of cooking that brings me joy.
When I slow down long enough to savor the value of home cooking, this is what I experience - connection, creativity, nourishment and gratitude.
It can be easy to forget about the joy that cooking brings. Day after day of doing the same task, trying to get dinner on the table as quickly as you can or rushing out the door with breakfast on the go. Not every meal has to be a home run or even a fancy sit-down event, but there are some wonderful experiences that can come from slowing down and savoring the meals that you make at home. Cooking can be so much more, if you let it.
It can be quite an art, a chance to try something new, an opportunity to show care for the people you love, a creative space for play and fun, and even a way to reduce stress and connect with your body. Cooking a meal has so much more to offer than simply providing fuel for your body to function.
As a food blogger, I’d love to say that I’ve always experienced cooking and food in this way. But I haven’t.
For far too long, I completely missed the joy that comes from cooking, nourishing your body well, and enjoying a delicious home-cooked meal at the table.
Whether I was relying on ultra-processed foods to give me energy or simply looking at everything on my plate only for the fuel it provides, I didn’t always see the value in cooking a meal with a variety of nourishing ingredients and flavors. But, a few years ago that completely changed.
Food is just fuel, or so I thought
“A woman’s menstrual cycle is a sign of good health.” Those were the words that flowed from my doctor’s mouth just minutes after I explained to her I had stopped getting my period.
Confused, all I could think was ‘Wait? I thought I was living the healthiest years of my life?’ Despite my strict diet of mostly fruits and vegetables, a specific daily exercise routine, and doing all the “right” things for my health, I had slipped into the unhealthiest state of life. How could this be?
I started to investigate where it all began. Growing up like many kids, I had an aversion to vegetables and a love for chicken tenders and sweet lemonade. But as I got older and more involved in sports, specifically competitive cheerleading, I started to feel my body respond differently to the foods I once greatly enjoyed as a kid.
With an urge to feel good, I began to seek out information and shift my diet to support my new interests. I did a deep dive into all things health, hyper focusing on everything I ate. I began counting every calorie and focusing heavily on eating fruits and vegetables.
During this time, I didn’t prioritize balance, protein, or rest, which quickly led to an imbalance in my hormones. The signs of this quickly showed up: mood swings, loss of my period, brittle hair and nails, and inability to regulate my body temperature well.
Despite these signs of undernourishment, I continued to push on without noticing what my body was trying to tell me.
A shift in perspective that led to a new love
Fast forward to that day in the doctor’s office, I realized just how much I had been failing to fully listen to and nourish my body. I wanted to be healthy. I wanted to be a good steward of the one body I was given. So, I started to rewrite the story of what health meant to me.
Beginning with the foods on my plate, I knew that something had to change. I fell in love with cooking. I realized that this necessary task could be a beautiful space to play and create if I gave myself the freedom, completely shifting from a restrictive mindset. I enjoyed every part of the process from searching for ideas, picking up ingredients at the farmer’s market, trying new flavor profiles, and building nourishing meals that both my body and my taste buds enjoyed.
I realized healthy eating shouldn’t be restricting or bland, but rather balanced, enjoyable, and supportive to the body.
My friends and I started cooking dinner together. I attended a virtual cooking program and connected with fellow home chefs from multiple countries. Picking up cookbooks at the local library, I learned lots of new recipes and techniques.
This love for cooking continued on as I started dating my now husband. He invited me over for a delicious meal of seared scallops with roasted vegetables and fresh chimichurri that we cooked together on one of our first dates - so swoon worthy! Still to this day, we incorporate cooking and the experience of trying new cuisine as often as we can. Honeymooning in Italy and Greece, we attended multiple cooking classes, trying to pick up as many new skills as possible. It was the best!
Recipe for homemade chimichurri sauce
Nourishment leads to flourishing
It wasn’t long after we got settled into our new home together that Will built raised garden beds for me so that I could dabble with home food production. Not only have I loved the ability to grab some basil for a fresh pesto, lettuce for a side salad, or green bell peppers for a stir fry, but the hobby of tending the garden has been quite spiritual for me.
Tending and caring for the garden is vital for it to flourish. With time, care, attention, and nourishment, I’m able to steward it well and provide it what it needs to grow. Remembering I can’t control it all, I can do my part, and rely on the Lord to bring it to a state of flourishing. And that’s why it’s named the Flourish Garden.
To flourish means to grow in a healthy way, especially as the result of a particularly favorable environment.
Our bodies, both yours and mine, are not all that different. Our bodies need nourishment, connection, and care to thrive. And we have the opportunity to place them in a more favorable environment, providing them with what they need and then relying on the Lord to help us flourish. What a beautiful process!
Recipe for firecracker beef bowls
What if cooking became more than just a daily task, but a space to connect, create, and flourish?
May this be an encouragement for you the next time you cook a meal. Remember that cooking can be so much more than simply placing food on the table or checking it off the list. Cooking can be an opportunity to nourish and care for the one body you’ve been given.
Whether you love cooking or are just beginning your journey towards more nourishing meals and rediscovering the joy of cooking, I hope this story reminds you that health can be found in cooking meals with balance, creativity, and gratitude.
Cooking brings me so much joy and I am beyond thankful that I get to share many recipes from my kitchen to yours.
Here’s to nourishing your body well so you can continue to flourish in all that you do!
All the best,
Grace Barker
More from Grace & Greens
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Love this post. Grace it has been so amazing to watch you grow and develop the love for taking care of your body. Also, your love to help others, your post are inspiring for all. Keep caring and loving your life and body and helping others. Proud of you! ❤️
Loved hearing more of your story, Grace! Your writing and recipes are inspiring others to fall back in love with cooking, too! ❤️🌱