COOKING WITH CORNHUSKER BY EMILY NEBRASKA

Spring semester of 2021, I took the risk of studying abroad during the pandemic. I lived alone in a studio apartment and was so excited to have my own kitchen. I tried a ton of new recipes and explored new flavors and ingredients that I discovered at the European markets. Each weekend when we would travel to another country, we would normally stay in to cook on Friday nights. I began taking charge of the cooking for the group and would receive quite a bit of praise for the meals I would prepare for everyone. Each Friday, I would make something different for our group of 9. I enjoyed it so much that I began hosting dinners on week nights back in Luxembourg. I have always enjoyed cooking and learned about food thanks to my mom and grandmas but I never realized how much of a passion of mine it actually was until going abroad, realizing it was something I was good at, and accepting that it is one of my favorite creative outlets. I like creating my own recipes and trying new combinations of ingredients and flavors. I feel like I can express my creativity and individuality by creating, altering, and perfecting various recipes.