How cooking with my partner has become my favourite time of the day

Before the pandemic struck, I found that I seemed never to have the time to create a substantial, healthy meal for myself and my partner. Food deliveries were a common sight at my home, alongside frozen ready-meals and packed produce. The less time it took to make, the better. Now that I’ve found myself inside more, I decided to pick myself up and move my time to the cutting board. For the first time in my life, I began taking notice of what I was putting into my body and spending more quality time with my partner. By combining the two, I feel that I had found something that was missing before the world stopped spinning.

Pre-Pandemic Life

Before March 2020, I would usually be found either at the theatre I work at or travelling between various destinations in London. This lifestyle brought many lunchtimes meal deals, packed lunches and a lack of nutritious meals and time spent with my loved ones. It became too comfortable to change and, despite my wallet taking a big hit from the constant buying on the go, I was not ready to reflect on where I was at that time. It’s a shame that it took a pandemic to make me realise that the life I was living is not the life I want to aim for.

From the Theatre to the Kitchen

As a creative, the pandemic has been a challenging period to take onboard. Work dried up, and I could not return to the theatre, and thus, an empty void has emerged that needed filling. I soon became restless and searched for outlets to let out my inner creative needs. Once I became comfortable cooking for myself, I began exploring how I can make my food turn from food to pieces of art. I explored different ways of making bread, used exotic ingredients to add flavour and colour, and began taking care in how the plate would look as a finished product. I am shocked at how much fun I was having. I finally understood the difference between cooking and culinary arts. My creativity soon flourished into something I never knew was possible. The plate became flooded with colour. The fresh produce allowed me to build recipes that not only tasted great but saved me cash along the way. Not to mention that I began seeing substantial savings in my bank account. My health also improved. I lost significant weight, began to gain the energy I previously lacked and found myself more focused on tasks I would struggle with before. The benefits soon became visible. The only thing left was to have someone there beside me, and once my partner stepped into the kitchen, it quickly became something special.

There is always time to spend with the ones you love

I will be the first to admit that my directorial side came out when cooking with someone else. There was a common goal to achieve, and with it came precise instructions. I had to learn to let go and enjoy the process of failing rather than aiming for perfection each time. This took a couple of tries, alongside some telling off from my partner before I mellowed out and focused on her rather than the plate. Smiles and laughter filled the kitchen as we explored our pallets and spent some quality time together. We discovered our strengths and weaknesses in the process. She is a fantastic baker and can create amazing cakes, loaves of bread and other delicious pastries. I, on the other hand, thrived with vegetables, pasta dishes and meats. Together we make a fantastic team and provide a 3-course meal worthy of any restaurant. But that did not matter anymore. Just having her by my side was enough to make the day worthwhile. Soon after that, I found myself looking at the time, awaiting the reasonable time to begin cooking again. We would go and pick out the best ingredients from the supermarkets, prep everything before cooking, take our time during the process, and end up eating at a much healthier time of the day. Not only did we achieve a well-balanced diet, but our fridge was also filled with the freshest of ingredients, ready to make much more complex dishes. This is something I will not be dropping once the pandemic is over.

I can honestly say that I did not think this was possible before the pandemic hit. Being young and always on the go, it was too easy to fall into the trap of ordering takeaway foods and already made products. Now, I know better. The health benefits are too great to drop, and once our busy lifestyles return, I now will have something to look forward to when I return home. As long as she is right there beside me, I know I will have a great time.

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