When Daniela responded early to my open call for Storied Recipes with a wish for me to assemble and photograph a charcuterie board, I couldn’t understand the request. It seemed… vague, unspecific to any hertiage, and open to a variety of ingredients and approach.

Little did I know how this board represented a story of rejection, defection, and redemption. When I finally understood how the board tied together the many strands and people in Daniela’s dramatic story of contrasts, I felt overwhelmingly thankful that I had not allowed my assumption to limit me from following through on Daniela’s request.

One note on this episode - our original conversation was almost two hours long and I edited it to around 45 minutes. I am including at least one bonus episode with this story and will welcome requests for further bonus episodes.

A name that tells the story of a dramatic life of suffering and hope. Plus the naming conventions that make it easier to find a doctor in Czech Republic!

Life defining memories made as a 5 year old resulting in a life long struggle against feelings of fear, trauma, and rejection

The desperate choice Daniela made between life and death as a 19 year old

Whether communism or openness led to more changes in authentic, traditional Czech cooking

A different approach to meals in Czech Republic

That line between cooking as an act of love or an act of control

A very, VERY different approach to Easter Egg Hunts

Christmas dinner that lived in a bathtub!!

How is it that the Czech people ate meat and flour for almost every meal and were never overweight?

The culture shock of a first visit to a Canadian supermarket

You can find Daniela's book here: Both Side of the Iron Curtain