SUMMER BAKING
Welcome to A Nourished Life
I’m Eva, a cook, writer, and recipe developer living along Portugal’s windswept coast. Through seasonal recipes, reflections, and stories from the table, I explore the connection between food, wellbeing, and everyday life.
To me, a nourished life is found in simple things, a meal shared slowly, fresh bread from the oven, and the rituals that make life feel meaningful.
RECIPES
Nourishing recipes for everyday meals and special occasions
Roasted Eggplant, Burrata & Spicy Tomato-Date Jam
A Dish Meant for Sharing There are dishes that ask to be plated and eaten carefully, and others that invite you to lean in, tear off a piece of bread, and dive in. Roasted Eggplant, Burrata & Spicy Tomato-Date Jam is the latter. It begins with eggplant, charred...
Roasted Beet, Orange and Mint Salad
From Market to Table: A Winter Salad in Portugal I walked along the ocean after lunch with a dear friend, the sun on my face, a cool breeze threading through my hair, the sound of life all around me. Waves crashing in wide, steady rhythms. The high-pitched giggles of...
Kale, Purple Cabbage and Curried Pineapple Salad
Kale, Purple Cabbage and Curried Pineapple Salad with Lemon–Honey Vinaigrette and a Sweet and Salty Brown Sugar Almond Crunch Some salads are just bowls of greens, but this one has some serious craveable cred. Deep greens paired with jewel-toned purple and gold signal...
Polenta Cakes with Roasted Tomatoes and Artichokes with Ancho–Honey Glaze
Some dishes manage to feel both deeply comforting and quietly sophisticated at once, and these polenta cakes with roasted tomatoes and artichokes with ancho–honey glaze are one of them. We’ve been traveling over the holidays, first to New York to see our son,...
Purple Sweet Potatoes with Charred Peppers and Lemon-White Bean Purée
Sometimes a dish hits every note you didn’t even realize you were craving — salty, sweet, tangy, bright, and just a touch spicy. This roasted purple sweet potato with charred peppers recipe is one of those dishes. It looks beautiful on the table, tastes even better...
Toasted Walnut and Basil Pesto
This year, I celebrated my birthday in the most unexpected and heartwarming way: in Como, Italy, with my son and my granddaughter—three generations who all share the same birthday. We decided to meet there to be near my daughter-in-law’s family, who live just outside...
REFLECTIONS
Tools, rituals, and reflections for a nourished mind and body
Living with UCTD and MS: A Personal Autoimmune Healing Story
A journey through early MS symptoms, a UCTD diagnosis, and the slow, intuitive return to health It started one morning with a strange sensation running down my spine, a sharp, tingling current from the base of my skull to my waist. Within days, the sensation spread...
Wellness Starts with Why
Discover the power of identifying your ‘why’—the key to staying motivated and creating lasting change in your journey to a healthier, more mindful life.
Understanding Glycemic Index vs. Glycemic Load
Understand the difference between glycemic index and glycemic load, and why glycemic load may be a more accurate way to manage blood sugar levels.
Seasonal Spring Recipes
Spring cooking is all about freshness – crisp vegetables, fragrant herbs, and dishes that feel light yet satisfying. This collection brings together simple, seasonal recipes perfect for easy lunches, outdoor gatherings, and everyday nourishment
French Potato Salad
This French-style potato salad is delicious on its own, served on a bed of greens, or used as a side dish with a protein. The crisp pea pods give it a fresh flavor, and the dressing is filled with bright-tasting herbs and mustard.
Provencal Asparagus Tart
There is something about French Provencal food that really speaks to me. Haute Provence cuisine is a much lighter and simpler style of cooking verses Haute Cuisine, which is what a lot of people associate with French cooking. Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of...
Lemon Asparagus Risotto
Slow Food at its Best There’s something meditative about making risotto. Unlike other dinners that invite multitasking, risotto asks you to slow down and stay present. Stirring, watching, adjusting, it’s a quiet ritual that turns simple ingredients into something rich...
Nicoise Salad
The Nicoise Salad is one of the great French culinary concoctions. It is simple, fresh tasting, and a nutritiously power-packed dish. It is a wonderful salad to make for a buffet table or pot-luck, as it allows people to take the ingredients that suite their particular diets and preferences.
Lemon & Vegetable Couscous
Looking for a side dish with bright and fresh flavors? This Lemon & Vegetable Couscous is great hot, cold, and at room temperature. It can be served as a side dish or as an excellent vegetarian or vegan entrée, when plated on a bed of greens, such as arugula. In...
Preserved Lemons
Preserved Lemons are a wonderful addition to many recipes. A staple in Moroccan and Middle Eastern cuisine, they have become a more popular ingredient, adding a lovely and unique citrus flavor to chicken, fish, vegetables, rice, and, my favorite, couscous dishes....