Urban Lifestyle


Every Flavour Tells A Story

By Christina Jeffrey


My first lesson in life about food came from my mother. Naturally, our mothers are the ones who feed us from the day we are firstborn. Our food experiences are primarily influenced by what they make, how they make it, and the ingredients they used. I was no exception, and my mother loved to entertain with food being the center around our table. Most importantly, the flavour was what truly separated my mother's cooking from everyone else. She wasn't a chef, but a regular home cook like the majority of us. The difference was how she prepared the food and the combinations of flavours that she used to bring it all together.


This instilled in me at a very young age the importance of flavourful food and how satisfying it could be. Today, I choose natural, whole foods that help me thrive, energize me and are vital to my health. Food energizes the body, mind and spirit. When we eat natural, whole foods, we enhance our energy that enlivens our entire being.


We must appreciate and celebrate food and all that it does for our bodies. Food should bring us together and create opportunities to share love, laughter and memorable moments. I think my mother understood that. We celebrated weekly around our family table, but it was always with very flavourful food.


When we take a bite of food, we receive a significant amount of information through flavour. We are drawn to foods that incorporate various flavours, and we all favour some tastes more than others. Flavours bring us back to our childhood memories, holiday celebrations and vacations. We will always remember who we were with, what we were doing and what we were eating. Every flavour provides us with a story from each memory throughout our lives.


By the time I was sixteen, my mother had gone back to work, and I started to cook our weekly meals. I quickly discovered how rewarding it was to eat fresh produce, with foods offering a variety of colours. I experimented with different combinations of spices, herbs and citrus. I found it so rewarding to create recipes that are balanced and rich in vitamins while pleasing our sense of sight, smell, and taste.


My mother had an extensive network of friends in Woodstock, New Brunswick, where I grew up. She was never shy to share with them what I was up to. Eventually, her friends started asking her if I would prepare items for their family celebrations. I started making specialty cakes, experimenting with flavours like orange and dark chocolate, lavender, blackberry with white chocolate, and blueberry and lemon. Then I started baking different cookies and other baked goods with a variety of nuts, citrus and chocolate. With every experiment and every bite, it became evident how powerful flavour could be, how flavour could provide a different experience with every bite.


Now with a family of my own, I make sure we gather around the table daily, celebrating each day with a flavourful meal. It not only nourishes our bodies but provides a time for us to share, reconnect and be together. There's comfort in knowing that at the end of a long day, I can create an experience for my children, that every season will have a memory for them just based on a simple flavour of the food they eat.


Urban Baker Co. will be a unique experience. As you explore The Blog, within Urban Baker Co., you will find simple recipes for a weekday meal, ideas for entertaining and celebrating a weekend with your loved ones. There will be healthy snacks and some sweet treats too. In The Shop, you will see each product is unique and has been made with a combination of flavours that will provide you and your family with an experience that every flavour truly is a beautiful and decadent story.


CHRISTINA