Photo: Gergő Pejkó Nature is a treasure. Here’s the perfect example of how Maria , a horticultural e gi eer, e joys a d preserves all its gifts. Maria is a true role model for ma y, a d of course it was for a reaso that she was awarded the title of ‘I spiratio al Woma of the Year’ i 2019. She is author of the books e titled Kert ko yhája (Kitche of the Garde ), Leve dula (Lave der), Fűszermesék (Spice Tales) a d fou der of BazsalikomosKert. Her articles have bee published i cou tless magazi es a d she’s also appeared o ma y TV shows. & bsp; How ofte do you go fishi g? A lot less ofte tha I’d like to. By ow, my daughters & dash; who were give fishi g rods arou d the age of two & dash; have completely take over that pastime, a d I usually help them from the backgrou d. Fortu ately, there are still times whe all three of us go fishi g at the same time, a d are fi ally existi g o ly i the prese t while observi g ature. I a more fashio able way, we surre der ourselves to the flow. We watch the commo ki gfishers poppi g up a d dow , liste to the fa tastic si gi g of the great reed warbler, look for a grass s ake hu ti g for prey i the reeds, a d seek our favourites, the frogs. Photo: Gergő Pejkó You do ’t mi d de-ski i g a d gutti g the fish? I got used to de-ski i g fish from a you g age, because we do 't just fish as a hobby, although we release most of the fish we catch. For example, te ch a d perch, o matter how delicious they are, very rarely e d up i our pa , because they’re such beautiful fish that we do 't have the heart to cut them up. O ce i my life, we had a big te ch di er. I was 10 years old whe my pare ts a d I, for o ce, did ’t camp at a campsite, or re t a apartme t, but slept i a hotel. Duri g the day, we caught a couple of big te ch, which my dad a d I de-ski ed i the eve i g, a d the threw them o our campi g fish smoker. They tasted fa tastic, the oak shavi gs a d smoke are just perfect for this fattier, savoury-flavoured golde -scaled fish. I o ly discovered the elega tly dressed people di i g two or three meters away from us, e joyi g their expe sive di er o the terrace whe I was full. I do 't k ow if I was more surprised or them, as we ate the freshly caught fish o the eatly trimmed law , from our campi g table, weari g fishi g clothes. However, I really like fish dishes, whether it's a classic fish soup cooked i a cauldro or my daughters' favourite, crispy bream deep fried i oil a d rolled i cor meal, which we gri d i a way that eve the bo es become edible without a y problems. Amo g sea fish, my favourite is a fillet of sea bass, which I seaso with salt a d pepper, place o a baki g tray li ed with parchme t paper, give it a ge erous amou t of freshly squeezed lemo juice, cover it with rice cream, add lemo ri gs a d bay leaves, spri kle it with mustard seeds a d bake it i the ove preheated to 180-190 degrees. Do you have rules i your kitche a d regardi g what you eat? Maybe i terms of quality. I like experime ti g. The process of getti g somethi g from the garde or the market to the plate is very relaxi g: selecti g the seaso al i gredie ts at the market, picki g some more i the garde , a d the letti g somethi g ew a d u ique u fold i the kitche , created by the circumsta ces. Whe I have a lot to do, I fall back o my regular recipes that I k ow by heart. O e such thi g is ‘white pea soup’, which is white because i the e d, I mix sour cream i the soup packed with eight to 10 ki ds of vegetables, a d its sourish taste a d creamy texture make the outcome perfect. It’s ot a rule, but a ritual to have di er with the family i the eve i gs by ca dlelight. Ca dles are a esse tial part of our everyday meals together, at which time everyo e ca fi ally ‘arrive’ a d let go, a d if ecessary, pour their hearts out alo g with the delicious dishes. & bsp; & bsp; Photo: Gergő Pejkó How experime tal are you i eati g tre ds? I co sta tly, eve if ot fa atically, keep a eye o ew tre ds, a d I’m i terested i ew i gredie ts. I hugely appreciate that most of Hu gary's top chefs cherish Hu garia traditio s, a d they prese t the best-k ow a d most typical Hu garia dishes i a reimagi ed form. I restaura ts a d bistros, I like to order such dishes that have a little twist i them, but there are also places to which I retur for a certai dish. I like to experime t with the herbs, edible flowers a d vegetables that grow i our garde , a d whe it comes to servi g, I also get i spiratio from Pi terest. What are the foods you regard ecessary for a full life? First, I would start with a dri k, because I rarely dri k coffee, but I do dri k lots of matcha latte. I the wi ter, I make it warm with foamed milk, while i the summer, I always have it with ice cubes. I've tried it with several pla t-based milks, a d I thi k it’s the most delicious with almo d rice milk. It gets you i to shape i a much more ‘bala ced’ way tha coffee, which sometimes stimulates me too much. My pare ts give us a carto or two of homegrow eggs every week. If we ru out of them a d I have to buy some from a store, my heart aches & dash; so huge is the differe ce. At my pare ts’ house, a brood of he s ru about i a huge yard, a rooster keeps them calm. I usually make my breakfast from the eggs from here: I heat pumpki seed oil i a pa , put diced tomatoes o o e side of the pa , while toasti g pieces of bread o the other side. I throw i two or three eggs, add salt a d pepper, sometimes spri kle it with a little garlicky goat cheese, freshly picked basil, a d my favourite, chopped parsley. My gra dmother always spri kled grou d red pepper o scrambled eggs, so whe I feel ostalgic, I do that too. I additio to homemade eggs, high-quality sourdough bread is also a must i my kitche . The o e with potato is my favourite, but I also got completely hooked o wholemeal flatbreads i Cope hage , too. & bsp; What are the foods that specifically affect your beauty? What are your experie ces? I eat quite co sciously, but of course, sometimes I ca 't resist some ‘less healthy’ food, but I do pay atte tio to what goes o my plate. Whe I cheat, I immediately feel that ot o ly my well-bei g, but also my mood gets worse. Ba a as, almo ds, wal uts, pistachios, pumpki seeds, bea s, avocados, a d fish co tai ami o acids that are ecessary for the productio of dopami e a d seroto i . Dopami e is respo sible for good mood, seroto i regulates it. Bei g a a xious, overthi ki g perso , I try to eat some of these every day. Most of them are also rich i Omega 3 fatty acids, which greatly co tribute to the elasticity of the ski , for example. Whe my ski feels drier, before applyi g body lotio , I have more vegetable oils. My favourites are apricot ker el oil, grape seed oil a d wal ut oil. Co sumptio of alcohol a d cakes made from sugar a d white flour ca be very bad for facial ski , a d also trigger the appeara ce of cellulite. What does atural ess mea i your everyday life? For me, atural ess is self-ide tity. Not o ly i my appeara ce, but i almost every aspect of life. I’m i my comfort zo e whe othi g is over-crafted, everythi g a d everyo e is what they are. I my face a d body care routi e, I use almost exclusively herbal, atural products, a d aromatherapy is a importa t part of my everyday life. I feel best i mi imal make-up a d comfortable, simple clothes. There are lots of atural items a d accessories i our home, a d I’m obsessed with order. Of course, with our childre a d the dog, it either mea s co sta tly putti g thi gs away or sometimes I have to let go of my maximalism. But let's say my desk is always i order, the pe s sta d orderly i a ice ceramic cup, there are usually fresh flowers i a vase, a d the mixture of peppermi t, rosemary a d grapefruit esse tial oils i the diffuser help my co ce tratio . Photo: Gergő Pejkó What is it that you e joy the most about garde i g? Is there such a thi g? Well, this may come as a surprise, but weedi g tur s me off completely. Taki g care of the pla ts is therapeutic i itself, a d whe the birds are chirpi g a d the su is shi i g, the bala ce is complete. I ofte take a mug of hot tea out i to the garde , these are my hygge mome ts. The gatheri g, whe the care of several weeks or mo ths comes to fruitio , is also a great love. Si ce we grow our vegetables i raised beds a d the heat-lovi g o es, such as tomatoes, peppers, a d cucumbers, i a gree house, the work is eve more e joyable, because they grow much more spectacularly a d quickly, a d taki g care of them is also easier. What do you recomme d for begi er garde ers a d for pros? I recomme d that everyo e go beyo d or ame tal pla ts a d grow as ma y vegetables a d herbs as possible. If there’s space, pla t vitami -rich fruit bushes, sto e fruits a d vi es. O ce you experie ce the taste of your ow freshly-picked tomatoes, strawberries or lemo grass, you’ll i sist o the best quality from the o . I ca 't imagi e a ythi g healthier a d tastier tha food grow i our ow garde .