I have always been a food lover, but for many years cooking did not arouse my interest. I was fascinated by trying new flavors, discovering the history behind dishes and connecting with different cultures through gastronomy. However, I never saw the need to cook. I grew up in Colombia, where it is common to have someone to help out at home with the cooking, and my mother, a hard-working and determined woman, didn't have the time or the inclination to cook either.
Everything changed when I arrived in Germany in 2014. Suddenly, being away from home made me miss those flavors that connected me to my roots. It was then that I realized that, through cooking, I could bring a little piece of my homeland to my table.
One of my first jobs in Berlin was at the Mexican Embassy, where I had the opportunity to learn from an incredible chef who taught me how to prepare chicken tinga and mole tacos from scratch. Inspired by that experience, I started cooking for my friends, experimenting with new recipes and rediscovering the traditional dishes of my childhood.
Of course, not everything was perfect from the start. I remember my first attempt at making Colombian beans: I cooked them for hours and they never softened. I felt completely frustrated, until I discovered that they were “pasmados” (as we say in Colombia when the beans don't cook properly).
Now I look back and laugh, because after several attempts, I managed to create my own bean recipe that transports me to my grandmother's house.
In 2017 I decided to launch Colombian Foodie, a blog that initially focused on plant-based recipes, but which over time evolved into what it is today: a space where I celebrate my roots through cooking.
Here I share traditional recipes, ingredients that make me feel at home and the way I combine flavors to reinvent dishes from my childhood.
My mission with this blog is to inspire you to cook without fear, to try, to make mistakes and to try again until you find your own style. It doesn't matter if you've never cooked before, the important thing is to do it with love and patience. Cooking is a journey, and I would love for us to take it together.
Thank you for visiting my page! I hope you enjoy the recipes as much as I enjoy sharing them with you.
