“One of my favorite vegetables is chard, which involves a simple, fast, prolific culture, without predators”

“I have always loved to cook. I’m not sure where it came from, as my family wasn’t particularly keen on cooking, with the exception of an aunt who babysat me often. My father had three benchmark dishes: quiche, roast chicken and spaghetti bolognese. With my mother, of Peruvian origin, it was more varied, she often prepared vegetables, even if they were sometimes frozen. No one at home was very connected to the seasons or to the diversity of tastes. I was the only one who really cared about it. I started with sweet dishes, I made roasted banana fritters with honey and choux pastry when I was 12, complex things that fascinated me …

Born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, I grew up in an apartment then in a house in Courdimanche [Val-d’Oise]. I remember that there was rhubarb growing in the garden and that one day I planted a potato… Not much, then. But I really liked plants, I loved going mushroom or blackberry picking.

At school, I was pretty much good or average in everything… I was just doing what was necessary to take the next step. I followed the middle path, baccalaureate in eco, then BTS in commercial action. I was told that I was a good communicator, I didn’t look any further. I worked a bit as a model, I did Latin dance, worked in a communication agency, then as a hostess in nightclubs …

I got fed up and I went to Tahiti for three years, then came back to Paris to work in real estate. After a burnout, I stopped everything and resumed studies in sustainable development. I discovered the AMAP system (association for the maintenance of peasant agriculture), in particular because I was looking for good products to cook. Finally, it is through the kitchen that I reconnected to the earth.

The AMAP that I joined was that of the Ferme du Bec Hellouin [Eure], by Charles and Perrine Hervé-Gruyer, the French pioneers of agroecological market gardening. They suggested that I take their first permaculture training, I met Edouard there, and we went to set up the Ferme des Rufaux in 2012. This is how I became a market gardener. I understood then that I had always strived towards that, without knowing how to reach it, without knowing anything about rurality… It was a succession of meetings and doors that open.

Today I have my own farm in Lower Normandy, Les Jardins d’Hayden (after my son’s name). Since I have been a farmer, I have had the best products for cooking. I have fun making varietal selections. Diversity, tastes and colors are my thing. And one of my favorite vegetables is Swiss chard, which involves a simple, fast, prolific, predator-free cultivation that is attractive to the grower, but consumers often don’t know what to do with. This crumble full of cheese and seeds is a way to rediscover this unloved vegetable. Fun and guaranteed success. “