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Creative combinations: Cooking is often about experimentation and trying new ingredients together. With a dose of adventure and a little sense of how different flavours go together, you can sometimes end up with the most satisfying results. That was how this velvety eggplant chocolate brownie and seed cracker with za’atar came to be. Always a bonus when you have food loving friends to experiment and taste test with.

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Farm delights: The simple joys of eating what is seasonal and remembering where our good food comes from. And extending gratitude to the other creatures, the land and most of all, the Creator.

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Spring in NZ: Never had I experienced spring in the later part of the year. It was such a delight to pick ripe lemons and grapefruit right off the tree and to see many local birds, like the tūi, sipping nectar from the beautiful kōwhai flower. I also got up close and personal with a few sheep - these ones were enticed with some bread in my hand, but I did end the trip by cuddling with a one-week old black lamb who had no objections to my embrace. Sheep heaven!

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Good eats in Aotearoa: Traveling all around both islands meant that I was privy to both Kiwi classics as well as some memorable eats. Not only did I get to sample a range of flat whites, fish and chips, pāua (abalone) pancakes and mince pies - but I also indulged in some fancy and fresh brunches and even wood fire pizza with a view of a glacial lake. The best part was the many good conversations around these meals. Bonding over good food.

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Spätzli: After a year of cooking virtual meals together it was such a treat for my friend and I to finally cook in the same kitchen. Since I visited her in her Swiss home, I asked her to choose the meal we would prepare together.

She choose a childhood favourite of hers called spätzli which is essentially a fresh, short noodle baked with loads of cheese. Her family enjoys pairing this dish with soft lentils and finely diced vegetables - although it is traditionally eaten with venison stew, steamed apple and stewed red cabbage with chestnuts.

While dancing around to some Swiss tunes, I learned how to work the spätzli contraption to form the short noodles. We grated oodles of cheese since the Swiss love their dairy. Definitely no objections from my end.

What a memorable final evening with her family. A special meal prepared side by side and enjoyed at the same table. We don’t know the next time we’ll cook in person again, but we’ll be sure to resume our virtual cooking dates soon!

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Elderflower syrup: My friend lives close to a forest in Switzerland. Post-supper one evening, while walking her dog, we picked several bunches of these fragrant flowers in the forest and brought it back to make elderflower syrup. A first for both of us. We soaked the flowers for two days in citric acid and raw sugar. Then we carefully strained the flowers, boiled and reduced the liquid until it was thick and syrupy.

If you get a little distracted like we did (aka dancing to fun music in the kitchen) then you’ll end up with an accidental - but still delicious - caramelized version.

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Raclette: I have had raclette before, but there was something quite special this time about sharing this meal with a Swiss family in their home in Switzerland. The mom of this family is an exceptional cook and I have enjoyed many of her meals while we were all in Asia together.

After some time apart, it was great to catch up and share an interactive meal. A fun meal where we exchanged updates while grilling the vegetables, melting the raclette and dressing the potatoes. We ended on a sweet note with Swiss chocolate, of course.

I wonder where in the world we will next meet again.

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Celebrating colours in our food: Often I’m stunned by nature’s beauty. I love the vibrant colours and patterns. And as an eater, I also love the blend of textures and flavours that come together when you assemble different ingredients into one dish. It all helps to bring some brightness to a dreary winter day.

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Lunar New Year: The year of the tiger is here and I got to ring it in with my family over a few special meals. For one meal, my aunt taught us how to make the most flavourful savoury sticky rice. We also experimented with making a version of the sweet rice dumplings using purple sweet potato. What a beautiful natural colour! And since it has been a curiosity of mine to try a special Hakka celebration dish called “poon choi”, my family generously obliged since I’m back so rarely. It’s basically a giant basin dish filled with layers of vegetables, seafood and meat covered with a rich broth. We finally tried it this year, and I got a delicious taste of my ethnic roots. We later broke out a hand carved set of mahjong. Good thing we played just for fun cause my cousins got me good.

At a different meal, my sister beautifully prepared a giant red snapper that my brother-in-law went across town especially to get. Meanwhile I had fun making a baked version of leen goh (new year cake) with plump goji berries for that pop of red. In addition to all of us sporting some kind of red clothing, my nieces were gifted with adorable hand sewn tiger (lion) sweaters. We couldn't resist snapping numerous photos to commemorate the occasion.

This was a LNY for the memory book.

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Clementines: Although eating this little fruit just as is the best, it was also fun to experiment with turning it into cake. Since I’m the worst at following recipes here is yet another one I adapted adding less sugar, more zest and a few other twists.

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Making chawanmushi and cheung fun: Finally reunited in the kitchen again with my aunt. This means cooking up a storm and laughing together all the way.

We made a lobster pasta with the meat but wanted to make use of the shells. So the accompaniment to our pasta was chawanmushi, Japanese steamed egg. We made a lobster broth for the liquid portion which turned out so sweet and aromatic. No other seasoning was needed except a hint of mirin.

For fun we also experimented with making cheung fun, Chinese steamed rice roll. My aunt tried another method before that flopped so we used another technique today. And it worked!

The meal was not only so much fun to make but so delectable to enjoy. We savoured every single bite and vowed to make this exact meal again. But first many other dishes to cook together!

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Baking with apples: After years in the Philippines, it is such a treat to be reunited with a whole assortment of apples again. Russet apples are one of my faves!

Good thing apples store well long after the harvest season. We get to enjoy them even though it's winter.

Apple spice cake for my family.

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Despedidas: Although it would have been fun to gather a big group of friends together, I'm so grateful that in spite of the pandemic I could still savour many small gatherings with friends. It was a special treat that I was asked each time what I wanted to eat, so I was able to enjoy a range of meals from foods I love and will miss when I'm away.

Zamboangan food. Charcuterie board. Spanish paella. Kakanin (native sweets). Tapsilog and taho. And good brunch places. One part of what makes going away a little easier.

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Fishing for largemouth bass: Early in the morning, we set off to different spots around the lake in the wooden bangka boat to find some bass. Armed with our bamboo fishing rods and live shrimp bait, we were ready to go.

With only the buzz of insects and the flight and calls of water birds around us, the whole landscape was so tranquil and calming. There was no rush to our fishing - except the blazing sun on the first day which burned my sunscreen-free skin and the cool rain the next day which eventually chilled my body - eventually forced me to return to shore. But I savoured every moment, even the simple delight of dipping my feet into the water while holding my rod and listening to the chorus of wildlife around. Soul nourishing indeed.

We did end up catching a handful of bass on both days and fried them up extra crispy so we could enjoy them, bones and all. But with three dogs around looking up expectantly at us, we were sure to share some with them too.

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Catching bait: After planning a meal that would include fresh coconut milk, we cut open a few coconuts to get the white meat. Since it was too much for our meal, I learned that we could use the rest of the coconut to catch bait for the lake fish we eventually wanted to catch. Who knew?!

Using traditional traps, we put fresh coconut shavings inside to attract the likes of shrimp and small fish. We attached them on one long string and staked one end into the muddy shallow part of the lake and left them overnight.

Lo and behold, we checked the traps the next day and saw that we caught a few shrimp and small fish known as biya.

Now I'm ready to catch a big one!

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Lake Lumot: A few days getaway on an island in the middle of the lake has been nourishing for the soul. Rose at dawn in time to see a fisherman who just caught a few tilapia and black bass. And later found some fresh kabute mushrooms amidst the lush greenery on this island.

And then we lunched in this perfect spot. Not much needed to be said during our meal: we simply basked in the good company of humans and nature.

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Cashews: The steps involved in extracting and preparing the cashew nut is truly a patient process.

On the tree, a single cashew nut dangles below each fruit. Once ripe, the fruit and nuts fall from the tree. Since the pulp from the fruit often gets onto the nut when it falls, they are usually washed and sundried first.

My friend had spent a couple weeks gradually collecting the nuts as they fell. By the time I arrived at the farm she had already collected a substantial amount.

We asked one of the experienced farm staff from the Dumagat tribe to teach us how to extract the edible nut from the shell. He explained that there is a sticky substance inside the shell which is actually acidic and can burn your skin. In his community, they traditionally put this substance on their skin to aid healing when they get cuts. But we were encouraged to wear gloves for protection.

While our experienced farm staff halved the shells, the other two of us used whittled bamboo sticks to pick out the nuts.

We then toasted the nuts over hot fire. Once cooled, we removed the skin as they are quite bitter. By this time, we had a small group around the kitchen table peeling the skins together. Processing nuts is truly a community affair.

Since it was also meryenda time, our rule of thumb was that for every cashew we put into the jar, we could put one into our mouths. Only fair, right?

In the end, we managed to almost fill a big jar and now appreciate why cashews are often so expensive. My friend later made a delicious rice pilaf with fresh coconut milk sprinkled with these freshly toasted cashews.