Cozinha da Saudade - Memoir Cookbook

"Knowing my future children will grow up not having first-hand experiences of how a grandmother and all the love she could give feels, I felt it imperative to record my own memories of growing up with these pillars of womanhood supporting me. At a certain point in my life, I suddenly found myself witnessing the intricate tapestry of home coming unraveled all around me. Losing my mother felt like a key block of my inner structure had been removed, a dismantling of everything that made me myself. My childhood home came tumbling down, the security my parents gave me, my identity and relationship to the island I grew up in, all crashed and burned. But like a burning forest, those ashes provided rich soil for my inner garden. This cookbook records times and people past and passed, and is testament to the continuum of my ancestry. So, to my future kids, future grandchildren and beyond, this is a way for you to know the people who made and loved you, even when we and they might not be around."

Cozinha da Saudade is a bilingual memoir and cookbook written and illustrated by myself during my last year of my visual arts bachelor's degree. The cookbook focuses on the themes of home and belonging, through collected stories of food.