Tell us a little about yourself
My name is Clementine, and I’m a cook and multidisciplinary maker living on unceded Dja Dja Wurrung land in North-Western Victoria, Australia. My partner and I moved out here from Melbourne and started very slowly doing up our house 3.5 years ago. I balance two busy jobs: a full-time job in fashion design education at a university and a very diverse range of cooking and recipe writing work. I am currently working on my second cookbook, set to be released this year! It’s a very personal book; it feels very close to my heart and very vulnerable to release out into the world, but I’m trying to be brave this year, so wish me luck!
What role has food and cooking played in shaping your life?
Food and cooking are something I’ve been drawn to my whole life. My Grandma and my Mum were both fantastic cooks and involved me a lot in the kitchen as a kid. I found it a kind of magic to make these marvellous things from scratch: fruit and flour and butter could become the most wonderful tart or pie or cake. A ritual in nourishing yourself and your family and friends that I was taught from a young age.
How do you incorporate the idea of “food as medicine” into your daily routine?
Learning to listen to my body and become in tune with what it needs has taken me time, but now I always approach cooking as a means to nourish myself, prioritising vitamins and minerals and fibre and protein to keep myself healthy and strong. If I’m ever feeling like I’m coming down with something, I reach for a good-quality Mānuka honey, lots of citrus and ginger and turmeric. I grow a lot of herbal and medicinal plants in my garden and will make teas for myself based on my needs at the time.
How do you think people can reconnect with the joy of cooking in today’s busy world?
It’s not easy. There are enormous industries profiting off keeping us away from engaging with growing and cooking our own food. But finding the joy in cooking, like anything in life, is something you have to practise. The more you do something, the more naturally it will come to you, and I’ve found that setting time aside to prepare some things for the week ahead has been really helpful to me. Putting on some music that I like, pouring myself a nice drink to sip at while I chop, setting a bit of a scene. A little bit of time invested like this can then mean that each day’s breakfast or lunch or dinner is easier and more enjoyable, especially when you’re tired after a long day at work. Outside of that, I highly recommend cooking with your friends! Ultimate joy! Such fun!
