Hello there,

My name is Joy.

Apt, I know.

I want to introduce myself to you and why I’m starting this blog.

I love food.

There’s a start.

My first memories are of food.

When I was 3 years old, sitting by the river in my home town with my Mum eating hot, greasy and OOOOHHH so tasty fried chicken, filling my mouth and stomach with it’s utter deliciousness.

Eating GIANT scotch pancakes, bigger than my head covered in Strawberry Jam in the Scottish highlands, visiting my grandparents. Fingers and face sticky with the strawberry goo.

Slurping on my mother’s dessert creation; ‘Vulture’s Vomit’. A mixture of mashed banana, milk and demerara sugar. Sweet, milky and so comforting.

Waking up on a Saturday to the warm smell of banana bread drifting up from the kitchen.

Food is on my brain all the time. Whether it be cooking it, visiting restaurants, finding new recipes, exploring different countries and their cuisines or looking round food markets and shops.

My happy place is wandering round a food market or supermarket looking at all the different possibilities. Genuinely, if I ever feel panic or sadness rising, I take myself to the nearest supermarket and wander round looking at all the different possibilities of food.

I like to fill my plate with Joy. Your gut and your mind are so interlinked. And so much of eating is also based on what you see visually. A happy tummy is a happy mind.

And here’s the honest part.

My mental health has hit rock bottom and I am really struggling.

Oh…..now that was hard to say.

When your name is Joy and people expect Joy, it’s difficult when you can literally not find Joy in anything.

When you find it difficult to leave the house.

When you find it difficult to talk to people.

When you find it difficult to enjoy anything.

When you find it difficult to pin on a smile and pretend that everything is okay.

When you find it difficult to find motivation to do anything but stay in bed.

When you find it difficult to be creative at all.

In January, out of desperation, I decided to try Veganuary. As a way of forcing myself to be creative with food and remember to eat regularly.

I found new recipes. I remembered how inventive you can be with porridge (I know, you’re rolling your eyes, but you can !) , I found a reason to force myself to get out of bed and not just hide from the world.

This is all taking tiny baby steps but I’m slowly starting to find my creativity again.

So what do I plan to do on this blog, you may ask?

I plan to invent new food creations. I plan to explore different recipes. I plan to review different restaurants, cities I visit, foods I buy.

Food is on my brain all the time and I am passionate about cooking it, eating it, exploring it and trying out new restaurants and foods.

So I’ve created this blog to share this passion with you.

And find Joy again.

I am primarily an actor.

I am primarily a person.

I am primarily a friend.

I am primarily a daughter.

I am primarily a FOODIE.

I am all these things.

I appreciate these pictures are of me happy and smiling which isn’t a true reflection of me right now HOWEVER I’m starting this as a way of connecting mental health and food. Opening up the conversation.

I hope to help myself AND help others too.

These pictures remind me I can be happy again.

I hope to fill your food and life with Joy too.

That’s my goal.

To fill your food with JOY

Much love,

Joy xxxxx