Welcome! This website is by me, Jenn Perkins.
I am a 32-something chemist with a gluten free husband whom I love and adore. We just moved to Switzerland. I have a passion for fresh, flavorful and exquisite tasting food.
More specifically, for cooking food my husband can eat that we both love.
My Goal & Your Presence
My goal is to empower you to be able to play in the kitchen, particularly if you are on the gluten free side of life and may feel a bit more challenged to find inspiration for flavorful satisfying dishes.
I have evolved the focus of this blog over time. At first there was much less emphasis on making food gluten free – while we have always made gluten free food regularly, I was convinced that it shouldn’t be a big deal and so didn’t want to make it as such.
But cooking gluten free IS a big deal. And it can be challenging, especially on the baking end of things. But it can also be easy. It is a big deal not just because of the added difficulty to some dishes, but because it is so much a part of my husband’s life.
We don’t do gluten free because it’s a fad thing to lose weight or whatever. We do it because we have to, and because it will always be a part of our lives.
But I have learned that doesn’t mean that GF has to be a handicap, especially when it comes to cooking delicious food. Learning and discovering the main concepts behind making gluten free food has been surprisingly freeing.
Learning is My Key
Always I am still learning, but the more and more experienced I become, the more and more my creativity is able to come out and I am able to just play and experiment.
And that’s where all the fun of cooking and creating food comes back. I believe in eating real food that came from living plants and animals rather than “stuff” in a box that was synthesized through some chemical reaction.
There are reasons beyond the current green “trend” to really appreciate food, and that includes having an understanding of where food comes from and how it is made.
Food is deeply connected to how we define and see ourselves, and how we relate to others. I am completely and utterly convinced of this, and each experience proves this to me time and again.
The more we remove ourselves from that awareness, the harder I think it is to enjoy and appreciate those simple pleasures when they come along.
After all, the act of biting into a freshly picked peach on a hot summer’s day – a peach so ripe that the fragrant juices start to dribble down your chin and onto your hands, leaving you quickly racing to lick your fingers to grab every last bit of its sweet glory before it falls to the ground – well, truly what can be more pleasurable than that? Food is all about simplicity and pleasure, and sharing.
Because of this philosophy, this blog is about my cooking and finding ways to make and appreciate food and flavor, without being overly fussy. At the end of the day, food is meant to be eaten, not hung on a wall in a museum. I strongly feel that cooking should not be something people are afraid of – cooking instead, is how you learn about yourself and develop or share your own culture as you interact with others and food.
Food is central to life, and beyond the calories are memories, emotions, and meaningful experiences that should never be ignored.
My Photography
My camera – Nikon D5600
My lens is either 105 mm f/2.8 or 18-200 mm f/3.5-5.6G depending on my mood.
I am so grateful to my awesome father for gifting us this wonderful camera as a wedding present. I have learned more about photography in the past year than I think I ever have in my entire life. And every day I fall more and more in love with the art of photographing.
Sometimes I wonder which I love more about keeping this blog – the photographing or the cooking! I have collected some great resources for food photography on my Photography Tips page. You can also follow my flickr stream if you are curious about my photographing adventures (mostly non-food) as I try to develop my skills.
Disclaimer
Some of the things I make are my own creation, and others are just making a recipe that I know will be full of taste.
I make every attempt to give credit where credit is due. If you feel that I have forgotten to do this adequately for some reason, please email me to let me know and I will correct the matter promptly.
Health Disclaimer
I have tags on my blog for gluten free, dairy free, and diabetic friendly. However, I do not purport to have any medical credentials or knowledge to safely say for every individual what is safe for them or not.
If you are not sure if a particular dish is right for you, you need to check with a certified health care professional who can best assess your specific dietary and medical needs.
Only you and your doctor can know if something is OK for you to eat. I add the tags only because they may be helpful to readers seeking inspiration for meals when on restricted diets, but I am NOT a medical doctor NOR am I a certified nutritionist.
And as always, ingredient contents vary between products. Just because one brand of food product that I may use on my site is gluten free/dairy free etc. does not mean that all other food products also are.
Always check labels for ingredients, safety, and allergy information and if you are unsure, seek the advice of a certified health care professional before consuming. Again, I am not a medical doctor nor a nutritionist and I have no legal qualifications to give advisement when it comes to personal health.
Full Disclosure Statement
I do not receive any income for my blog. I am not paid by anyone for any product mention. I support this blog fully out of my own pocket. All opinions are my own and mine alone. I am generally not open for reviews, that is not the focus of my blog.
If I have done a product review in the past or do one in the future, it will have been because I truly love and recommend the product of which I am speaking and no other motive and any gifts/freebies etc. that may or may not have been received will be disclosed fully in each post that pertains to such things.
All opinions are my own and not necessarily that of my employer.
Comment Policy
Comments are welcome and encouraged! Please feel free to start discussion within posts.
Have an idea for a variation on something I made? Constructive criticisms or advice? Did you try a recipe – how did it come out? All of these things are great to talk about!
Generally, please be on topic and be respectful of others. Spam is not tolerated. Please keep in mind that under no circumstances are comments on Jenn Cuisine or its associated social networking sites to serve as your own personal free advertising platform, but instead are to promote thoughtful discussion and conversation.
I reserve the right to moderate all comments as I see fit.