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Welcome to Polish Housewife

If you enjoy food, especially with an international flair; if you enjoy seeing new parts of the world and learning about their cultures, traditions. . . and, of course, their food; you’ve come to the right place.

I love preparing food for family and friends, and I also like to try new things – experimenting in the kitchen.

expat women, cooking class, international women, Poznan, bagels

Hosting a bagel-making class for the Poznan Int’l Ladies Club in our little blue kitchen. We are from L to R from France, Belgium, the USA, Korea, and Poland.

Our Family

I grew up in Arizona, the oldest of four children. My parents are good cooks, and in their 80s have just stopped making their own wine and beer. They are the ultimate do-it-yourselfers, and are so knowledgeable on so many subjects. Many will be surprised to learn my family is not Polish. My connection to Poland, that comes later.

I’ve had the opportunity to spend much of my adult life abroad in England, Spain, and more recently Poland.

Ellie and Rigby

I have three, talented adult daughters an engineer, a musician, and an artist (who has a couple of websites of her own which can been seen here and here), and currently share my home with two little fluff balls, Ellie and Rigby, that came from Bichon FurKids Rescue. I am an accountant by trade and work for a large Episcopal church as their Director of Operations and Finance, a more than full-time job that I love.

How I Became a Food Blogger

A decade ago, when searching online for recipes, more and more often, I found what I wanted on a food blog rather than on a corporate site such as Epicurious or the Food Network. I loved the generous use of color photos and the personal stories that accompanied the recipes. I felt like I got to know the blogger and that it would be fun to hang out in the kitchen with them. After following a few blogs, I decided to join in the fun. I started writing my first blog Food is My Love Language in 2009.

Eighteen months later, I left family, friends, and a job that I loved behind to take up residence full-time in Poznan, Poland. That was the beginning of my second blog, Polish Housewife – the story of my adventures in Poland and travels around Europe.

In 2014, I combined my two Blogger blogs into one WordPress site with the idea of becoming a more professional blogger. I kept the Polish Housewife name because it was shorter; it just made a better url. Here you find my culinary and cultural adventures, in Poland, the rest of Europe, and at home in the United States.

In Warsaw to see Paul McCartney.

Life in Poland

Since I accompanied someone working in Poland, with a good deal of paperwork and bureaucracy, I was given permission to live in Poland for an extended time, but I did not have permission to work. That was one of my toughest adjustments, being without a job.

Not that I have always worked. I was a stay at home mom for many years, working on my bachelor’s degree in night classes. This time, as the trailing spouse (a phrase used in the expat corporate world), I decided I would learn as much as possible about Polish cuisine, following friends into their kitchens, chatting with waiters and chefs in restaurants. I especially loved learning about family stories and holiday traditions that revolve around food.

As I mentioned, my family is not Polish, and today, I write almost exclusively about Polish food. I suppose some might say that’s cultural appropriation, but Polish friends have thanked me. Polonia friends have thanked me for reminding them of their home. Friends living in Poland have thanked me for sharing my love of Poland with the rest of the world, calling me Poland’s best ambassador.

What Readers Say about Polish Housewife

What a great recipe; this will definitely go in my winter soup line up. — Vicki
This combo is one of my favorites from Polish cuisine and one that I cannot conquer in the kitchen. Bravo to you Super Chef! — Chris
I don’t know why, but this post brought tears to my eyes. I’ll be thinking about my hometown on St. Martin’s Day. — Kasia
I’ve learned more about European history from your blog than I did in school. — Jean