Cooking is the only form of art that involves all five of our senses. We can hear when our favourite ingredient sizzles in a hot oil or when it boils in the most luscious of wines. We devour food with our eyes when it is extravagantly presented on a plate. We can smell its glorious aromas delicately flirting with our nostrils. We can touch it with our lips, caress it with our tongues and ultimately, we can taste it. Because cooking involves all of our senses it becomes one of the most sensual activities of our day. The only activity that can be as sensual as cooking and eating is making love.
I discovered the sensuality of food early in life. My step-grandfather was one of the most amazing cooks I have ever met. He could spend hours in the kitchen experimenting with different ingredients, textures, colours and flavours. My step-grandfather (who I call grandpa for loving me as much as he did) was from Azerbaijan where food was a mammoth part of their culture. Every meal for him was like a little blessing from above. He would enjoy every sit down at the table as if it was his last meal on earth. One of my first food memories involves my grandpa as well. I was not older than six-years-old. I got back from school and he had two bowls of hot soup ready for the two of us to enjoy. He took a piece of black bread and tore it into small pieces that he added to the soup. He made me do the same. I spooned out one small piece of bread soaked with broth and put it in my mouth. The burst of flavour exploded as I chewed softened black bread while drinking the warm goodness of soup at the same time. Since that day food was never the same. It was a playground with so many possibilities, so many joys and so many unexplored paths that lead to a blissful pleasure of satisfaction.
My grandfather lived in a different time. He did not work as much as the average Canadian does today and he did not have as much stress as many of us endure on regular basis. It is hard to enjoy small pleasures when working overtime, being stuck in traffic and doing loads of laundry are an inescapable part of our daily lives. Taking time while indulging in simple pleasures like eating or making love, becomes a luxury. We are too tired to embark upon a journey of cooking a meal every night so instead many of us stop at a local supermarket to buy a frozen meal. Sometimes we are too exhausted to put a frozen meal in to the oven so we bring home a take out meal. If we do decide to treat ourselves to a home cooked meal, we often do it quickly, without thinking or tasting as we are cooking. Then we promptly ingest the food, sometimes while watching TV and we move on with other things that have to be crossed out from our busy “to do” list. By the time we get to bed, we are so exhausted that having sex becomes a luxury or a treat for a special occasion.
To me cooking and eating are like meditation or sensual love making. It completely calms my mind and I indulge in every sensation I get from touching, watching, smelling, hearing and tasting my food as it is being prepared. Just like sex, sensual cooking and eating can guide us to that blissful life filled with delight and satisfaction. The key to cooking and eating sensually is consciously putting an effort into experiencing your food with every fibre of your being. Again, imagine making love, indulging, taking time, experiencing every caress, every tickle and every touch with your entire body. Cooking and eating sensually follows the same principles of pleasure. Sensual cooking means admiring the colours of your vegetables and feeling coarse grains of salt between your fingers tips. It means letting aromas of your meal gently tickle your nose and throat. Pay attention to what happens in your mouth. Are you salivating or is there something missing? Can you smell the marriage of ingredients or can you still smell them separately? Sensual eating means enjoying the final product with your eyes, with your nose, your tongue and possibly even with your hands. Take your time. Admire it first. Try guessing what it tastes like. Let your nose tell you what the food will feel like when you put it in your mouth. When you taste it, enjoy it slowly. Feel the heat if the meal is hot and feel what it does to your taste pallets. Is it spicy? Is it tangy? How does it feel on your tongue and how does it feel when you swallow that small piece of heaven? Is there an ingredient that shines through overpowering the rest of the components of your dish? If the dish is eatable with hands, what does it feel like when you hold it in your hands? Is it hot? Does the texture feel smooth or rough to the touch?
I am inviting you to the world of sexy food. But most importantly, I am inviting you to the world of pleasure and sensuality derived from cooking and eating. Each of my recipes comes with an appetizing description that will intrigue you and guide you towards your own bliss in the kitchen. Every recipe comes with a small preview of what’s to come when you finally indulge in fruits of your “labour”. I will guide you towards experiencing food like you never experienced it before and I will direct you towards making food into the most enjoyable part of your day. I encourage you to share this experience with your partner and to possibly make your newly discovered passion as part of your foreplay. I persuade you to share it with your friends and family. Make this sensual experience of food into a game at your next dinner party. This is your key to a brand new world of sensual indulgence that will enrich your life with a delicious satisfaction and newly discovered happiness in your kitchen...
Love, Emanuela
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