Kitchen therapy
The numbers don't lie, doing it yourself is popular. Whether it’s creative hobbies, DIY, decoration, home products, or even cooking, more and more of us are jumping on the DIY wagon. 88% of French people questioned by an Ipsos survey also declared “Creating recipes “like a chef” based on raw products – vegetables, meat, fish”. But why such a winning return of these practices in our households? Quest for meaning? Small savings? Pleasures rediscovered? All three at once, with a little advantage for the last one.
Yes, homemade is a rewarding act. It’s a way of taking care of yourself and your loved ones. In terms of physical health, there's no need to make a PowerPoint on the subject: cooking at home with good products is a guarantee that you only eat good things. But did you know that it also has an impact on mental health? This is what we learn from this article published on the Slate media site: “Cooking can be as effective as a meditation session”. Proof of this is the incredible craze for homemade bakeries and pastries during successive confinements. Popotting would be a real therapeutic act. Not only does it awaken all the senses (is there anything more satisfying than the smell of a chocolate cake rising and turning golden in an oven?) but it also allows you to be completely focused on a single task , where the current world spends its time calling on us from all sides. Another bonus, often discussed by the anxious people of this world: cooking allows you to feel in control and confident. Writer and director Norah Ephron said in her autobiographical novel Heartburn: "What I love about cooking is that after a hard day, there's something comforting in the fact that, if you melt some butter and add flour and hot stock, it will thicken! It's a certainty ! This is a certainty in a world where everything is uncertain. ".
But home simmering and other DIYs are not just solitary pleasures. Cooking for others also has very positive psychological effects, as this HuffPost article explains. “Cooking for others means nourishing, providing sustenance, helping to keep them alive. » It is taking care of others and thus finding a feeling of altruism and usefulness in society. For Matthew Riccio, a student research fellow at the National Science Foundation, this creates feelings of “community, closeness and intimacy. All of these notions are linked to increasing happiness, alleviating depression, and generally improving well-being.”
All in all, great reasons to get your hands dirty! And if you still lack a little motivation to take the plunge, here are some simple recipes to reacquaint yourself with your cooking and your jars!
A broth of young spring vegetables (it’s the season!)
A gratin dauphinois in a jar (best gift, to give yourself or really give!)
A milk chocolate blondie (also known as the softest cake in a jar in the world!)
A rhubarb jam that leaves no one unmoved (and that perfumes the whole house <3)
