Louisa Shafia

Chef, Cookbook Author, Recipe Developer

http://louisashafia.com

Instagram: @louisashafia

Let’s start off with the obvious place to start, please tell us a little about yourself*:

Hi, I’m Louisa. I’m enthralled – obsessed, you might say – by the food of Iran. I also love to cook healthy, vegetable centric, seasonal food. These two passions are my creative compass in life.

I make my living doing Persian food pop-ups, writing cookbooks, consulting, developing recipes, and teaching cooking classes. I’ve published two cookbooks, The New Persian Kitchen and Lucid Food: Cooking for an Eco-Conscious Life.

With a dear friend, I started a line of beautiful, eco-friendly cookware called Magpie Cookshop.

After living in Philly and Brooklyn for many years, I now live in Nashville, TN with my husband James, and our son Dante Bijan. I’m really enjoying living – and eating – in the South. Ironically, because Nashville boasts the country’s biggest Kurdish population, I now have many more places to shop for Persian ingredients, and access to the best baklava I’ve ever eaten.

*From louisashafia.com

Your first cookbook, Lucid Food, and cookware line both embrace the mission of being eco-conscious, can you explain a little about what is behind the concept of “lucid food”?

I’ve always felt strongly about conservation. Chalk it up to attending  Quaker school in Philadelphia, where there was a strong culture of environmental consciousness, or to my parents, one of whom was born during the Depression and the other who was an immigrant. There wasn’t a lot of waste in our household. Between those two forces, conservation and a wish to live in harmony with the planet became second nature.

Your second cookbook, The New Persian Kitchen, is a beautiful love letter to Persian and Iranian food and the family traditions that surround it. Why was it important for this to be the focus of your second book? 

When I wrote my first cookbook I included a few Persian recipes. I ended up having so much fun preparing those dishes and exploring those flavors that I decided to write a book focusing only on Persian food. I felt excited that this rich culinary world was part of my own personal history. I didn’t realize at the time that learning about Iranian food and culture was a way to understand myself. My father came from Iran but his heritage was very removed from our lives and he didn’t like to talk about it. Researching recipes and connecting with other Iranians and my extended Iranian family helped me uncover the mystery of my own background. The more I worked on the book, the more important it became for me, and that process of finding myself through the food of my heritage is an ongoing process. 

What’s something you wish you knew before you got started on the publishing path?

A book release is a rare time when journalists seek you out. I wish I had debuted my cooking tool, the “rice bonnet,” at the same time as the book. I’m happy with the attention that the product – my take on an age-old cooking tool for making Iranian style rice – has gotten, but I wish I had timed the two things to coincide.

What is your favorite thing to cook, either for someone who has never tried Persian/Iranian food, or in general for someone you care about?

I  love to make what I call Persian breakfast. It’s a very loose take on the breakfasts I was served in Iran. It starts with the classic Iranian herb platter which consists of fresh herbs, scallions, a Persian flatbread like lavash or sangak, radishes, walnuts, and feta cheese. To that I will add whatever fresh fruit is in season, yogurt, olives, toasted nuts and dried fruits, a special fruit conserve like rose petal jam if I have it on hand, and maybe some eggs. The only fancy thing I do is toast whole spices and put them in olive oil and pour that mixture over the feta. I put everything out in pretty bowls and plates, and let people help themselves. It’s so easy and really beautiful.

Do you ever experience fear, doubt, or loneliness? How do you manage those feelings?

Every day. Doing my work really helps.  When I procrastinate, the negative voices in my head can take over. But when I do my work and turn in a story to an editor, for example, I feel positive, like the world is a good place. That connection that comes from working with someone and corresponding also feels reassuring. Other things that help are exercise (walking, most essentially), meditation, spending time with friends, and being present with my son.

What do you do when you feel stuck creatively?

I take a dance break! Getting out of my head and moving my body really helps, so I like to put on something that makes me want to get up and groove, and I dance around and try to take up as much space as possible. I also like to pick up some writing that inspires me; sometimes reading a strong voice can help snap me back into focus on the point I’m writing about, and remember to communicate rather than worrying about fussy words.  

Of what you’ve accomplished or experienced thus far, what are you most proud of so far or found most rewarding?

Writing my cookbooks was a huge accomplishment and more challenging than anything I’d ever done. Then I went through the painstaking process  of getting my paperwork to visit Iran and that was mind blowing. I got to see where my father grew up, visit the graves of the grandparents I never met, and connect with my family there. The following year I had my son, and he has opened my heart in new ways and increased my capacity for love, not just for him, but for people in general. All of those events have shaped me and I feel grateful for them.

What’s something you would love to do but haven’t gotten the chance to yet?

There are a lot of places I’d like to visit. At the top of my list are Japan, Brazil, and Australia.

Is there any advice that you would give to your teenage or younger self?

Find women role models and learn from them. Also, learn Farsi.

What’s next?!

Here in Nashville where we live, I’m very excited to be working with the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, an immigrant advocacy nonprofit. We’ve been doing Persian fundraiser dinners in my home and at restaurants for the last two years. I’ve become such an evangelist for their work that I constantly rope in other chefs to cook for them. Now I’ve earned the title of Culinary Liaison, so I can continue drawing in support in an official capacity. I’m grateful to have found a place to serve, where my Persian cooking helps to raise awareness and bring people together around food.