Personal Chef Eva
How it all began...
At the age of five I was selected to play the cook in my kindergarten’s annual school play. Unaware of the major role preparing food would play in my life, I vividly remember my excitement when the teacher helped me dress up in the official cook’s outfit. After all, cooks were regarded as important contributors to the Hungarian home and community at large. Like true artists they created something new and unexpected with the – sometimes extremely limited –ingredients the seasons and the local government had to offer. For as long as I can remember, the women in my family had encouraged me to assist them with pasta making, preparing dinners, and baking and I proudly translated my home practice at our wood-burning stove to a well-received performance on the school stage.
When ingredients aren’t readily available and you’re always out and about looking for food, you have to become gifted at creating something fulfilling with whatever is available. For example, there would be months when there wasn’t any milk or butter and some of the village elders had not seen a piece of chocolate in over 15 years! Taught by several generations of cooks herself, my maternal grandmother – carefully passing along “secret” family recipes like tradition dictates – showed me everything I needed to know “from seed to kitchen table.” Over the years she patiently taught me how to cultivate the land, plant and grow vegetables and herbs, and prepare fresh ingredients into delicious, wholesome family meals.
Moreover, she demonstrated how to chop wood, select the best twigs, and start the stove’s fire from dried cornhusks or cobs if there weren’t enough twigs left to go around. Both my mom and grandmother ensured I was self-sufficient by the time I became a young adolescent – confident to create anything from scratch at the farm: from jams, noodles, and sausages, to homemade wines and pickled vegetables (e.g., sauerkraut). My mother would walk me through the traditional recipes every step of the way, carefully tasting and providing loving feedback in order to improve my skills to perfection. By the time mom got ill when I was twelve, I was well versed and ready to take over gathering, growing, and cooking for our whole family on a daily basis.
I apprenticed as a wedding party cook and by the age of fourteen I was appointed as an assistant cook in my first traditional Hungarian wedding. For days on end we prepared the dishes’ ingredients from scratch: the hand-made pastas, soup noodles, and a variety of breads. From early morning till late at night we washed, plucked, cut, and cooked the traditional wedding feast’s many appetizers, entrees, and large number of side dishes. We smoked prosciutto, made stews, prepared roasts, grinded beef, stuffed cabbage leaves, and baked an abundant selection of pretty cakes and cookies. On the day itself we served the wedding guests their four-course lunch and prepped dinner while the party attended church for the ceremony, so the steaming-hot-dishes welcomed everybody after they worked up an appetite by parading through town with the newlyweds. Upon the crowd’s return we served the traditional ten-course dinner and provided nibbles and snacks during the dance that ritually starts after midnight. Like all wedding cooks I worked long and hard for seven days straight and I loved every minute of it!
Cooking and baking is my passion. I learned at a very young age that food not only sustains life, but also brings folks together. Food opens up conversations and connects people in comfort or celebration. When I came to North America I spoke very little English and took on shirt ironing and babysitting before starting as a cook at La Jolla’s Café Budapest. Even though I enjoy preserving the traditions and recipes of my Hungarian heritage, with thirty-three years of cooking experience – working in the U.S. restaurant industry for over 18 years, doing anything from bartending and serving to cooking for large, special events – I am versatile and comfortable adjusting any menu to your specific preference. I do, however, take particular pride in preparing specialty dishes from Eastern Europe and American cuisine.
