Photo by Rebecca Blackwell ; Chocolate loaf cake with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge.
Hello friends! I have been having so much fun writing these questions every week because your answers make me feel like I’m getting to know you. So, this week’s question is a deep dive into my get-to-know-you ulterior motives…
What does your favorite food say about your personality?
It strikes me that this question is, perhaps, made even more interesting if you ask your best friend, spouse, significant other, child, parent, or sibling to answer it about you. If you dare.
I think my favourite foods and some of the foods I mostly make, would suggest I am traditional and old fashioned. Hopefully in the nicest possible way.
My favorite food: anchovies! Love them as umami in pasta sauces, love them even more whole on a good piece of bread with butter, even better if it’s for aperitivo time! My partner’s favorite food: melanzana parmigiana (eggplant Parmesan). What does it say about us? A heck of lot about where we live! 😍 🇮🇹
Eggplant adoration is universal! Mum had at least 10 staple eggplant recipes and many more on rotation. One of my faves is eggplant skins (!), steamed till soft and silky, then served with a light blend of shiitake soy sauce and fermented black beans. Or just dipped in a tangy nuoc cham.
Hehe some of my friends think it's quite odd to rhapsodize over eggplant skins, which so many people discard, but they're lovely when they're all smooth and silky, and actually much of the eggplant's flavour is in the skin.
We bottle up anchovy-laced butter for Xmas gifts. Even people who say they hate anchovies can't get enough. It's become more popular than our triple liqueur chicken liver paté!
Oh I must look up her recipe! Ours is quite simple, not really a recipe at all - we just blend a stick of butter with 5 or 6 anchovy fillets and some garlic 😝
This is such a good question and a hard one to answer. Because I'm also someone who has such a strong sweet tooth and passion for baking but I am also someone who is a diehard vegetable fan and could eat an entire head of broccoli simply boiled without anything to go with it. And yet, I also adore variety and how dishes can transport us to far-flung places. I get bored eating the same thing two days in a row and even if say I might have porridge a few mornings a week, the toppings and spices I use always vary. And I love nothing more than travelling to discover new to me ingredients, flavour combinations and cuisines.
I don’t know what this says about us though 😂 But only good things I’m sure! But it’s funny - my husband could eat the same thing day in and out. He always like to joke that he was probably safer marriage material than me with my desire for variety and trying new things 😂😂😂
Haha! My husband is very similar to this. He'll eat anything I put in front of him, but would be perfectly happy eating the same thing over and over again. And we've had similar conversations. I'm the wild card in this relationship. We are who we are. 🙄
Yup, getting to try out new foods is one of the greatest joys of travel. Don't get people like my friend's MIL, who'll only eat at Chinese restaurants wherever she goes, even when the food is shoddy - and often not Chinese at all. Imagine ordering chow mein when you could have a partridge cassoulet in Carcassonne or super crispy lechon (whole roast pig) in Cebu.
For me, travel was all about discovering new dishes & produce (70%), museums (20%) and gardens (10%). We spent whole days exploring local markets and bakeries. In Vietnam, we lugged baskets of fruit back to the hotel cos there were so many varieties we'd never seen before.
That is true although I happily eat veggies whichever way - plain or heavily seasoned, raw, blanched until just al dente or cooked to death in lots of olive oil and garlic the way the Italians do. With vegetables almost anything goes for me, haha
Vignarola definitely but also beans braised in olive oil and garlic or cicoria first boiled in salted water until soft and then refried in olive oil, garlic and peperoncino etc.
I can relate to this in every way. I don't like the same thing day in and day out. I like variety in everything I do. Otherwise, I become bored. I think what this says about me is I want to experience life to it's fullest, be adventurous, explore new things. My cooking is one area that expresses that. My husband will also eat foods no matter what I put in front of him, but he will also eat a PBJ every day.
I always struggle to answer the question "what's your favourite food?" But what I do know is that whenever I try to figure it out everything that comes to mind is nurturing and wholesome. As plain as it is when I don't feel well or can think of nothing else Vegemite toast with lashings of butter on white bread is my go to (very Australian of me).
My guess is that you are a very nurturing person. Yes? And also, I also struggle to answer "favorite" questions. The perk of writing this thread is I get to ask the questions I have a hard time answering myself. :-)
I'm really struggling to answer this... Possibly because what it shows about my personality is my contradictory nature!
I'm 50% health nut, 50% dessert devotee.
On the one hand, I'm a gym/yoga lover who used to work in health PR. I love mountains of fresh fruit or sesame, black garlic and ginger stir fries laden with vegetables, Swedish slow roasted salmon with pink pickled onions.
However, anyone who has seen my posts will see clearly my baking obsession. The perfect pastry filled with chocolate cream, sticky toffee pudding smothered in caramel and custard, fudgy chocolate chip brownies filled with walnuts, eclairs, macarons, madelienes. I could go on!
Health Vs Cake is a daily battle! Which side of me will win today?!
Mum used to bottle up 7 large jars of pickled red onions every weekend - one for each day of the following week. Spices up anything - we even have it on toast ☺️
Wow, that is a lot of pickled onions! It's a fairly recent discovery for me but I love them. It does spice up everything! Particularly if infused with juniper berries.
Oh yes, it's not just about pickles. A good dash of vinegar or lime juice can really transform a dish. Acid is a huge part of so many food cultures - Thai, Vietnamese, Peranakan, Goan, Keralan... Friends often scold me cos I can never resist trying a new vinegar - I already have over 20 types in the pantry 🤫.
We also love assam (tamarind) and melása rodioú (pomegranate syrup) - their sweet-sour profiles are quite fascinating.
Your mum's pickling game is on point!! It is something I only came to love later in life. It was after I read Samin Nosrat's Salt, Fat, Heat, Acid that I discovered the power of acid to elevate food (even sweet food). I am such a convert now!
My diverse range of food preferences – from savory to sweet, spanning all continents, and from simple to sophisticated – reflects my curiosity and adaptability. I appreciate variety, whether it’s a comforting, simple dish or something more refined and complex. This openness to exploring different flavors and cuisines speaks to my love for new experiences while also valuing comfort and depth. My choices suggest I’m adventurous yet grounded, embracing both excitement and familiarity in the things I enjoy.
Oh the best kind of foodie sidekick to have when travelling! My friend actually dumped her husband while they were honeymooning in Italy (sent him off to a monastery) - he kept telling her not to eat this or drink that cos it was so bad for her... She spent the remaining trip by herself, gleefully stuffing her face with pizza, cannoli and all manner of "contraband".
I love all the answers here! And I so relate to the thought that it’s hard to choose a favorite food. But I will say that I try to make the best out of what ingredients I have or what’s available, it doesn’t have to be expensive or brand name. And I think that goes along with my personality: I try to look on the bright side and make the best of every situation!
Great answer! And you're perfectly right, even though food prices are shooting up like crazy, and it's getting harder to cook on a budget, a little love and care can turn even the simplest ingredients into warm comforting meals.
Many days, we're happy to just steam a light silky egg custard and serve that with plain rice for dinner, adding nothing more than a scattering of scallions. Or toss some pasta in an anchovy dressing with lightly sautéed garlic.
Mum used to pick up all the scraps at the butchers and make the most incredible stews with them. Or mince them up and make meatballs, patties, stuffing for dumplings.
Favorite food... a rich pasta bolognese with humanely and locally raised ground beef, locally made pasta with heirloom wheat, and homemade pasta sauce using local tomatoes, homegrown garlic, and herbs (I always have a stash in the freezer). Definitely a nod to my appreciation for fresh, lovingly raised/grown local food, preservation, and Italian comfort!!! And extra dark chocolate with hazelnuts...mmmm. (Anyone had the Trader Joe's bars).
I have no idea what my favourite foods say about me cos they're so wild. For day to day, I love food cooked very simply (steamed or flash-fried) and seasoned very lightly or even not at all. But then I go berserk with Dongbo rou 東波肉 (very sinfully prepared pork belly), duck confit, gribenes (chicken skin crackling), unagi kabayaki 鰻の蒲焼 (grilled eel)... And back when I could still take dairy: clotted cream and chocolate ganache by the spoonful (soup spoons) 😝.
I think my favourite foods and some of the foods I mostly make, would suggest I am traditional and old fashioned. Hopefully in the nicest possible way.
Wonderful response 😍
There's a reason why some dishes are passed down for generations 😊
My favorite flavors are sour, bitter, spicy, bold, and complex. And if that's not like holding up a mirror, I don't know what is. 🙂
My favorite food: anchovies! Love them as umami in pasta sauces, love them even more whole on a good piece of bread with butter, even better if it’s for aperitivo time! My partner’s favorite food: melanzana parmigiana (eggplant Parmesan). What does it say about us? A heck of lot about where we live! 😍 🇮🇹
Ditto on the anchovies!!!
The best!!! 🥰🥰🥰
Eggplant adoration is universal! Mum had at least 10 staple eggplant recipes and many more on rotation. One of my faves is eggplant skins (!), steamed till soft and silky, then served with a light blend of shiitake soy sauce and fermented black beans. Or just dipped in a tangy nuoc cham.
Whooooaaa serious yum!!!
Hehe some of my friends think it's quite odd to rhapsodize over eggplant skins, which so many people discard, but they're lovely when they're all smooth and silky, and actually much of the eggplant's flavour is in the skin.
We bottle up anchovy-laced butter for Xmas gifts. Even people who say they hate anchovies can't get enough. It's become more popular than our triple liqueur chicken liver paté!
Oooh Leana!!! How do you make your anchovy butter?! I make one with a recipe from Viola Buitoni. It’s like a drug!!
Oh I must look up her recipe! Ours is quite simple, not really a recipe at all - we just blend a stick of butter with 5 or 6 anchovy fillets and some garlic 😝
This is such a good question and a hard one to answer. Because I'm also someone who has such a strong sweet tooth and passion for baking but I am also someone who is a diehard vegetable fan and could eat an entire head of broccoli simply boiled without anything to go with it. And yet, I also adore variety and how dishes can transport us to far-flung places. I get bored eating the same thing two days in a row and even if say I might have porridge a few mornings a week, the toppings and spices I use always vary. And I love nothing more than travelling to discover new to me ingredients, flavour combinations and cuisines.
I relate to eery word of this.
I don’t know what this says about us though 😂 But only good things I’m sure! But it’s funny - my husband could eat the same thing day in and out. He always like to joke that he was probably safer marriage material than me with my desire for variety and trying new things 😂😂😂
Haha! My husband is very similar to this. He'll eat anything I put in front of him, but would be perfectly happy eating the same thing over and over again. And we've had similar conversations. I'm the wild card in this relationship. We are who we are. 🙄
Yes, thankfully no issues for meals here either. He happily eats whatever I cook.
Yeah my friend's uncle is the same. He doesn't cook and he lives alone - he'll order the same takeout dish 5 or 6 days in a row 🙄.
Ok, that is a bit extreme!
Uh huh!
Yes yes yes! Copy and paste for my answer. Well written.
Yup, getting to try out new foods is one of the greatest joys of travel. Don't get people like my friend's MIL, who'll only eat at Chinese restaurants wherever she goes, even when the food is shoddy - and often not Chinese at all. Imagine ordering chow mein when you could have a partridge cassoulet in Carcassonne or super crispy lechon (whole roast pig) in Cebu.
For me, travel was all about discovering new dishes & produce (70%), museums (20%) and gardens (10%). We spent whole days exploring local markets and bakeries. In Vietnam, we lugged baskets of fruit back to the hotel cos there were so many varieties we'd never seen before.
Same is true for most Italians I know. And then they complain that the pizza in Bali is terrible or that there are no decent cornetti in Singapore!
Ahh I often prefer my veggies without seasoning too - that way, you can really taste them!
That is true although I happily eat veggies whichever way - plain or heavily seasoned, raw, blanched until just al dente or cooked to death in lots of olive oil and garlic the way the Italians do. With vegetables almost anything goes for me, haha
Vignarola? Yeah I'll certainly make an exception for that, though I usually prefer my veg on the just cooked side.
Vignarola definitely but also beans braised in olive oil and garlic or cicoria first boiled in salted water until soft and then refried in olive oil, garlic and peperoncino etc.
Ooh I'm getting sooo hungry!
I’m sorry, I’ll stop now.
I can relate to this in every way. I don't like the same thing day in and day out. I like variety in everything I do. Otherwise, I become bored. I think what this says about me is I want to experience life to it's fullest, be adventurous, explore new things. My cooking is one area that expresses that. My husband will also eat foods no matter what I put in front of him, but he will also eat a PBJ every day.
I always struggle to answer the question "what's your favourite food?" But what I do know is that whenever I try to figure it out everything that comes to mind is nurturing and wholesome. As plain as it is when I don't feel well or can think of nothing else Vegemite toast with lashings of butter on white bread is my go to (very Australian of me).
My guess is that you are a very nurturing person. Yes? And also, I also struggle to answer "favorite" questions. The perk of writing this thread is I get to ask the questions I have a hard time answering myself. :-)
Haha that's cheating!
Haha not into Vegemite, but when I'm down with flu or some other bug, all I want is some plain rice porridge with pickled veggies on the side.
So interesting the things were pulled to.
I'm really struggling to answer this... Possibly because what it shows about my personality is my contradictory nature!
I'm 50% health nut, 50% dessert devotee.
On the one hand, I'm a gym/yoga lover who used to work in health PR. I love mountains of fresh fruit or sesame, black garlic and ginger stir fries laden with vegetables, Swedish slow roasted salmon with pink pickled onions.
However, anyone who has seen my posts will see clearly my baking obsession. The perfect pastry filled with chocolate cream, sticky toffee pudding smothered in caramel and custard, fudgy chocolate chip brownies filled with walnuts, eclairs, macarons, madelienes. I could go on!
Health Vs Cake is a daily battle! Which side of me will win today?!
Oh, Shell! I feel seen.
Mum used to bottle up 7 large jars of pickled red onions every weekend - one for each day of the following week. Spices up anything - we even have it on toast ☺️
Wow, that is a lot of pickled onions! It's a fairly recent discovery for me but I love them. It does spice up everything! Particularly if infused with juniper berries.
Oh yes, it's not just about pickles. A good dash of vinegar or lime juice can really transform a dish. Acid is a huge part of so many food cultures - Thai, Vietnamese, Peranakan, Goan, Keralan... Friends often scold me cos I can never resist trying a new vinegar - I already have over 20 types in the pantry 🤫.
We also love assam (tamarind) and melása rodioú (pomegranate syrup) - their sweet-sour profiles are quite fascinating.
That is quite the vinegar collection!! Oooh, I have never heard of melasa rodiou. Is it like pomegranate molasses?
It's the Greek version. There are quite a few versions across the Middle East as well.
Yeah, I tend to go overboard when it comes to vinegar, but hey, they keep forever! Never had a vinegar go bad on me 😉.
Ahh, interesting. I will have to see if I can find it.
Ha! That's true, they do keep!
Yummm, juniper berries are lovely. Mum also pickled weekly batches of carrots, daikon and cucumbers. All very refreshing after curries especially.
Your mum's pickling game is on point!! It is something I only came to love later in life. It was after I read Samin Nosrat's Salt, Fat, Heat, Acid that I discovered the power of acid to elevate food (even sweet food). I am such a convert now!
Haha, hear ya, gal! Think most foodies have split personalities 😵💫
My diverse range of food preferences – from savory to sweet, spanning all continents, and from simple to sophisticated – reflects my curiosity and adaptability. I appreciate variety, whether it’s a comforting, simple dish or something more refined and complex. This openness to exploring different flavors and cuisines speaks to my love for new experiences while also valuing comfort and depth. My choices suggest I’m adventurous yet grounded, embracing both excitement and familiarity in the things I enjoy.
Oh the best kind of foodie sidekick to have when travelling! My friend actually dumped her husband while they were honeymooning in Italy (sent him off to a monastery) - he kept telling her not to eat this or drink that cos it was so bad for her... She spent the remaining trip by herself, gleefully stuffing her face with pizza, cannoli and all manner of "contraband".
Haha! I love that!
Surprisingly they're still married!
🤣🤣🤣 OMG! Love this!
Hilarious, right? None of us could stop laughing when she told us, though we weren't exactly surprised.
I read this to my husband. He said I better not get any ideas! Hahaha 😆
🤣😂 If it's any comfort, he was perfectly happy to go cos the monastery was hosting some workshop he wanted to attend anyway.
That does make me feel better. I was glad to hear they are still married.
Oh, Rebecca. Your Chocolate Loaf Cake photo is enticing me to break my fast. It looks magnificent.
Haha! Sorry, not sorry? 😂
It is! But it completely distracted me from the question 🤣. Took a few min before I could focus on giving a proper answer.
😂😂😂
You did it intentionally, right? 🤣
It looks like either heaven on earth or all the temptations of the devil on one plate! 😂😈
It might be both. 😂
I think you’re right! 😂
It does look amazing!
I love all the answers here! And I so relate to the thought that it’s hard to choose a favorite food. But I will say that I try to make the best out of what ingredients I have or what’s available, it doesn’t have to be expensive or brand name. And I think that goes along with my personality: I try to look on the bright side and make the best of every situation!
I love that answer!
Great answer! And you're perfectly right, even though food prices are shooting up like crazy, and it's getting harder to cook on a budget, a little love and care can turn even the simplest ingredients into warm comforting meals.
Many days, we're happy to just steam a light silky egg custard and serve that with plain rice for dinner, adding nothing more than a scattering of scallions. Or toss some pasta in an anchovy dressing with lightly sautéed garlic.
Mum used to pick up all the scraps at the butchers and make the most incredible stews with them. Or mince them up and make meatballs, patties, stuffing for dumplings.
Favorite food... a rich pasta bolognese with humanely and locally raised ground beef, locally made pasta with heirloom wheat, and homemade pasta sauce using local tomatoes, homegrown garlic, and herbs (I always have a stash in the freezer). Definitely a nod to my appreciation for fresh, lovingly raised/grown local food, preservation, and Italian comfort!!! And extra dark chocolate with hazelnuts...mmmm. (Anyone had the Trader Joe's bars).
I would like to come over the night you are serving that please and thank you.
😂
I have no idea what my favourite foods say about me cos they're so wild. For day to day, I love food cooked very simply (steamed or flash-fried) and seasoned very lightly or even not at all. But then I go berserk with Dongbo rou 東波肉 (very sinfully prepared pork belly), duck confit, gribenes (chicken skin crackling), unagi kabayaki 鰻の蒲焼 (grilled eel)... And back when I could still take dairy: clotted cream and chocolate ganache by the spoonful (soup spoons) 😝.