BON APPETRIP

My love of good food had a natural start. I grew up in the countryside, in a tiny farm village surrounded by fields and a river. Producing food was a daily routine for my grandparents: my grandpa was a butcher; my grandma a fabulous cook. They had two large gardens, filled with fruit and vegetables, planted in spring and harvested in late summer to be prepared and preserved for winter. As a kid, I loved to look at all those delicious filled jars downstairs in the cellar and was particularly happy when my grandma would open up a jar of sweet and juicy plums for a traybake on Sundays. And like any other kid, I did the now-unthinkable and poured ketchup on my grandma's vegetable stew. As you can imagine, she was not impressed.

Later in life, my friends used to call me "Mamma Gigi", because as a student with lots of time on my hands, I became obsessed with cooking and made pasta for days. But at some point, my tastes and cooking became more refined, and even as a student, I would save up  to treat myself with the cheaper lunch menus at Michelin starred restaurants. That’s how I got used to eating out alone, as I simply couldn’t persuade any of my fellow student friends to come with me. Spending a lot of money on food, even when it was outstanding, was just unthinkable to them. Thankfully, that has changed now!

Years later, I started visiting supper clubs and even organised my own. In between, I began working in journalism, my first job after university was at a radio station, followed a great time co-directing a documentary movie for German public TV, then writing for magazines, until I finally became a spokeswoman for airlines. My passion for cooking only got bigger as I started travelling - both for work and  pleasure. Finally in 2012, I quit my former job and started my new life, doing the things I truly love: travelling, cooking and eating - and documenting my culinary adventures in all forms possible. By now, I write my own recipe column for Germany's prestigious ZEIT MAGAZIN, I develop, shoot and style whole recipe series for other magazines too, I produce recipe videos and whole content packages for clients and consult companies in culinary strategies, with a focus on sustainable food and culinary management. Bon Appetrip!