About me

Just call me Nats is all about bringing you recipes that leave you feeling healthy and happy! I’m an actuary and work in risk management but sometimes a girl just needs to relax and there is no better way than ending the day with a quick and delicious recipe for my boyfriend and I. Over weekends there is also time to explore amazing restaurants and develop recipes that take a bit longer – I’ll be looking at sharing this with you too!

I grew up in South Africa in a large family where mealtimes were always a family affair. It was a time where everyone would get to relax together, sit around the dining room table and either prepare for the day ahead and share the new challenges each day brings or relax and share everyone’s stories. It was a magical time!

Some weekends we’d go visit family and friends and I was always encouraged to try all kind of foods. I loved these get-togethers and explored African, Indian, Thai, you name it(!) all through family and friends.

It was not only the eating of food that was glorious but also the preparation that went in daily to provide food on the table that made it such a pleasure to eat. My gran did most of the day to day cooking and I remember monthly grocery shopping being a big highlight of the month. Mum and I bought so much fresh veg and I remember gran awaiting our return so she could start preparing veg and freezing it as necessary. My gran, Ouma Lulu as we liked to call her, had the best green bean recipe that is still a hit when the family gets together.

I spent my days in mum’s kitchen sitting on the kitchen tops as she and gran cooked away. One of my favourite memories is our Christmas preparation involving baking hundreds and hundreds of cookies both to take on our December holidays but also to hand out to family and friends to share the joy of Christmas.

I still enjoy spending my days in the kitchen and having lived just outside London for the past 11 years I’ve loved exploring all the range of foods on offer. My boyfriend, Phil, is the most amazing man and I love exploring food with him. We both love cooking and he is usually very good at providing feedback on my new creations but also loves tasting them all!