Libro de Sabores 
The Book of Flavors is not just paper with a brown cover, “it is the opportunity to create someone's favorite food.” That's what Mom told me. The kitchen can be a refuge for depressed people or for creative people. I told myself very deeply, but at this point I understood.  Food has the power to bring tears to your eyes or make you hate it. In the Dominican Republic, lasagna is the magical flavor between Christmas and my birthday, reminding me of the fights over the biggest piece from when I was young and still living in DR.
Mommy could prepare your favorite food and she could know what you wanted the most. She could also make something you hate into something you can't stop loving. Cooking, like running in a competition. If you dress up for a moment, another can win if you turn around for a second. The rice can burn, but sometimes we shouldn't follow the flan recipe to make it softer. Rice con guandule guisado y carne de res, I couldn't hate, nor could I detest mangu with salami, since in the DR they taught me that flavor comes from love.  
Today, cooking for me isn't just about creating a new recipe, it's about recreating old ones, about making the kitchen a refuge, remembering where I come from, my history, the taste of something new, carrying my roots and traditions in my blood, sharing with everyone what cooking means.  

– ML

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant