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When reading a book, it is important to remember that one is not just looking at words. They are looking at a time capsule in print. The author creates an image of a specific place in time. The reader is able to travel either to the future or the past through the writer’s lens.
The same can be said of cooking and gardening. When you make a meal from a recipe, you reach back into memory. You shape something from the past. This creation can be experienced by others in the future. When you plant seeds you’ve saved, you carry forward stories of survival and lineage. Books, recipes, and gardens—all are living vessels of heritage.
Books That Shape My Cooking and Creativity
Jessica Seinfeld’s Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food is a cookbook that deeply resonates with me. It offers inventive ways to nourish through hidden veggies. The approach is gentle, creative, and playful. What I love about it is how it invents ways to nourish through hidden veggies—gentle, creative, and playful. I’ve returned to its pages many times. It’s not just for guidance. It serves as a reminder that adaptation is at the heart of tradition.
I often take her recipes and transform them with African ingredients—adding, subtracting, or substituting to make them sing in ways that feel like home. Deceptively Delicious reminds me that creativity in the kitchen isn’t about following every rule. It’s about making something your own. At the same time, it’s about honoring what came before.
Books That Preserve Love and History
Another book that left a deep impression on me was My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams. Their words to one another are tender, passionate, and grounded in both love and duty. Reading those letters felt like holding a time capsule in my hands. They offered a glimpse into their daily lives. I could see the strength of their bond during a turbulent period in history.
Just like recipes passed down in families, these letters carried their love into the future. Like seeds planted in soil, they carried their faith and story as well. They reminded me that writing is not just about recording events, but about preserving connection.
My Bookshelf Essentials
Here are two books I continue to carry with me:
- Deceptively Delicious – Jessica Seinfeld – A creative reminder that food can be nourishing, playful, and endlessly adaptable.
- My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams – This is an intimate collection of letters. It captures history, partnership, and devotion in a timeless way.
Closing Reflections
Books shape us in ways big and small. They remind us where we’ve come from. They inspire who we are becoming. They carry stories forward for those who come after us.
👉 What books have shaped your life or inspired your creativity? Share your favorites in the comments—I’d love to build a community reading list together.
Luluisthatgirl 