Foreword

Why did I decide to write this book?

Well, in the beginning it was the thought of moving to our first home in foreign parts. It was going to be so very exciting — new beginnings, new places to explore, new friends to meet. Adventures abound!

Moving was one thing, but moving with four very young children and a husband who never flew with us was something else entirely. Just like the Royal Family, my husband always flew on ahead — separate flights!

Our first transition lasted for eighteen months before we were truly settled. Eighteen months of picking up the children, going to airports, flying, landing, doing homework from one school whilst getting ready to go to the next… all the while trying to make a nice, secure home in each new country.

And that is when I discovered something.

We may speak the same language — but do we?

Not, it appears, when it comes to food!

In every place we lived, the children wanted their comfort food, their little security blanket. We all love and need that familiar taste of home.

For me, that meant trying to transport us all back in time to Grandma’s house — a place of warmth and cosy feelings, warm kitchens and wonderful aromas, culminating in those delicious tastes and smells that somehow stay with us throughout our lives.

Even now, one smell of freshly baked bread can send you straight back in time.

Grandma was a really good cook — at least that is how I remember her! I’m sure most of us have memories like that: a particular dish, smell or taste that takes us straight back to that wonderful haven of safety we knew as children.

Even now, with my children grown, they still hanker after certain foods from the different countries and places we have lived. And there have been quite a few!

So the quest began.

With every move, I researched, experimented and somehow managed to recreate their favourite dishes. Sometimes the ingredients had different names, sometimes they were difficult to find, and sometimes I simply had to improvise.

But that became part of the adventure.

And so this book is my gift to you — the result of more than twenty years of living, travelling, cooking and raising a family abroad.

We all know the perils of moving. Even moving from State to State can bring completely different foods and traditions. Moving to another country, with different tastes, ingredients and cultures, can be quite another matter.

Sometimes we all need a little help.

I hope this book gives you just that, and that you have the most exciting and adventurous time living in foreign parts, with a little help from a friend.

After all, they say:

“Home is where the heart is.”

But in my family’s case, I think it is actually a little below the heart.

It is in their satisfied tummies — filled with those special tastes and memories of home.

Enjoy!

So welcome to our table

❤️