Peta Mathias.
She is an amazing woman, it’s true. Not afraid of reinventing herself, she is like the Madonna of the New Zealand celebrity chef community.
In this project, Three Hundred and Sixty-Five Days of Peta, I will be attempting to live life the Peta Mathias way. I’ve been reading and researching her books, and various articles that have been published in New Zealand magazines. My boyfriend thinks that I’m completely mad, and a previous colleague who is friends with Peta (New Zealand is so small) is not entirely convinced that I’m not a stalker. But all of this should be taken in the sprit in which it is intended: I’m going to have a freaking awesomely good time, with many a top-knot, French cheese, and glass of rosé.
This month I’ll be practising what Peta preaches in terms of summer food and cooking. Easing into the project slowly, and also I want to eat the amazing food that’s available while it’s still in season!
Of course, there is more to food than just cooking. I’ll also be EATING (hooray), and thinking about Peta’s food philosophies.
Peta is never quiet about her opinions and especially not those about food. A few quotes from Can We Help it if We’re Fabulous (2008) points us in the right direction:
“I think one doesn’t want always to be stimulated, impressed or moved to tears by a meal.”, p.42.
“When you’re young it’s all about impressing and experimenting and as you get older it’s about being at one with the universe and accessing your inner regional cook. ‘Regional’ is code for easy.”, p.46.
“Eating is the cheapest and easiest way to make yourself and other people happy…”, p.47.
“… chefs should cook with what’s in season and linger patiently all year for heritage potatoes, spring lamb and oysters. If we lose the myriad tastes of regional produce and don’t eat food at it’s optimal ripeness, then we lose whatever food culture we’ve inherited.”, p.52.
“Eat with your fingers.”, p.53.
“… you would be ruining your health by not eating chocolate…”, p.60.
“A really good way to not enjoy food is to believe the rubbish you read about it.”, p.67.
“Cook when you feel the urge but only eat when you’re hungry.”, p.69.
A lot of my own philosophies of food already run parallel to Peta’s. I think that my ideas about the meanings of “eating well” and “eating good food” are very similar to hers – that is, I like eating for the simple pleasure of eating awesome food, and I don’t endlessly obsess about whether or not I’m getting every single possible nutrient and how many slices of bread I’ve eaten. Live to eat, not eat to live. In saying that, I really like the idea of cooking whenever you like but only eating when you’re hungry; this is something that I’m going to be trying out fo’ sho’.
Tomorrow my brother Tom is coming around to my house for dinner. I’m planning to make the recipe for Espresso-Spiked Lamb that Peta writes about in Don’t get saucy with me Béarnaise (1996). I feel amazingness is nigh.
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