It’s crazy to think it’s been almost a year since I officially re-launched this cooking site — a year of discovering new recipes, finding new favorite food destinations, and sharing new meals with old and new friends. From pastas to pies to parathas, there was no shortage of good food and good company. Some of my favorite new recipes included matcha mint chocolate chip cookies, spinach & gruyere quiche, savory scones with goat cheese and chives, and spicy shrimp guacamole crisps.

It was also my first full year back in the States, which meant moving into a new apartment and re-stocking my kitchen again with new tools (a microplane grater, cast-iron skillet, and spiralizer were some of my favorite new additions) and getting reacquainted with using U.S. measurements again! It feels like just yesterday I was doing the opposite in my old flat in London — learning how to convert all of my recipes to grams, stocking up on new pots and pans, and figuring out how to get my tiny oven temperature just right. Even though I’ve moved several times over the past decade, cooking has always kept me grounded, allowing me to stay connected with my past while sharing with the present.

And though I lost one of my favorite cooking idols, Anthony Bourdain, this year, I realized how important it is to continue to carry on his passion of expanding our culinary and cultural boundaries. Some of the best travel experiences I’ve had were spent sharing a meal with others, bonding through the universal languages of food and laughter. As Bourdain once said, “If I’m an advocate for anything, it’s to move. As far as you can, as much as you can. Across the ocean, or simply across the river. Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food. It’s a plus for everybody.”

Cheers to new chapters and cooking adventures in 2019.