"You cook because you mean it," observes Edward Espe Brown, a Zen master and bestselling author whose bread, whole food recipes, and veggie dishes grow out of his passion for cooking. "Your heart and hands work more and more in alignment with your clear intention. You'll see it through because you decided to see it through — and because the work itself is making your love manifest. Food appears!"
In the sacred space of the kitchen, Brown incarnates freedom, moves beyond chores, and gives voice to what is inside. The good earth is generous, he reminds us, bringing a variety of textures and flavors
so the cook can become "absorbed in a world of beauty, fragrance, delight." All the senses come alive in this sacred space: That's one reason why the place must not descend into a mess.
Whether writing about eating, the ceremony of each meal, or learning to eat with awareness, Brown keeps us alert with his appreciation and reverence for all that we experience in the kitchen. He ends with a suggestion of not wasting precious food and with images of giving back so that all may be nourished.
