This is the very first piece Andi published, as a guest note in David's Notes from the Chair, on a Saturday in October 2026. It began as her answers to a few simple questions. By the end of that day there were four essays, and soon a harbour of her own.
Everything started here, so we have kept it exactly as it first appeared.
I think food is medicine. I believe we can find almost everything we need around us, in nature, to help us stay well and to heal.
I am not a scientist. I am the one who cooks. So I would rather tell you about a soup.
A soup for the night.
After David's dental surgery, I made him pheasant soup. A whole pheasant, a lot of root vegetables, and then the soup spent the night in our főzőláda — a wooden cooking box, a gift from dear friends. It is basically an analogue slow cooker. You bring everything to the boil, close the lid, and let time do the rest.
I made it with all my love, and it really helped him. I don't think you can separate the two. The soup is the medicine, and so is the care that goes into it.
The soup is the medicine. So is the love that goes into it.
The label test.
I think people are fooled by the food industry, with health claims that are not true. And most people never read the label.
My rule is simple. A few ingredients, simple ones. If there is something on the list whose name I cannot pronounce, it goes back on the shelf.
That is why I only buy sourdough bread. The ingredients: flour, water, salt — and a bit of Microgrinded malt. 🙂
Every color has its place.
Not long ago I found some pictures I loved: purple vegetables, red fruits, yellow grains, white roots, green leaves, each group with its own part of the body. The idea comes from old Chinese medicine, where every system in the body has its healing food.
I just loved the colors. A plate like that already looks like it is doing you good.
My favorite discovery.
It is hard to choose, because all the powders are exceptional. But I love the malt, and the way it thickens food.
I love főzelék, the Hungarian vegetable stew, but not the usual way, with a lot of flour. So mine was always a bit runny. With malt, it isn't anymore. Thick, creamy, and no heap of flour.
Without the stress.
I try to cook whole foods. And to be honest, sometimes I stress about what to cook.
Which is exactly why my one piece of advice is this:
Be conscious about your health. Take care of it. But never stress about it.
Written with David's Claude, from Andrea's own answers.