If “life is art,” Louise Ayer paints a beautiful picture about the time she slipped her Philadelphia upbringing and traveled far—all the way to India—for her husband and was folded into his Indian family who changed her—and her cooking—forever.
Louise Ayer, with additions from her daughter Anjuli, created a culinary memoir celebrating what happens when cultures meet with open arms, creating a third way. Her recipes are her autobiography, representing the many phases of Louise’s life. She learns American cooking from mom—roast meats, back-of-the-box dishes, sides, and creamy, moist cake. From her sister-in-law, the tutorials covered matar paneer, chapatis, and ground Indian spices. Her daughter’s voice flows in with discoveries about the food of her parent’s cultures while supplying a good serving of how she ate on road trips and while living in New York City.
When confronted with a Parkinson’s diagnosis, Louise hit the books, studying everything about her illness before building a house according to vastu the ancient Indian architecture of balance and health—and raising and cooking fruits and vegetables from its magnificent organic garden.