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-Okay, what do you need? So Daisy, I was wondering about what when you are when you were in Brazil, I was wondering what jobs did you do in Brazil - over the course of your life? So you live with your mom from when you were 12. When did you move out? And yes, and then I countie to study in Brazil and I became a French teacher. I had a lot of little jobs, I made the like Congress because I was speaking five languages. So I made a lot of congress's and then I study how to build something. So I was doing some reform in the house Wow. Yeah. And so when did you first move out? –where you were living with your parents? When did you move out from your parents?

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Exactly. We 22 years old. When I get married, I'm married to Julie Mayer in 1968. And he is an economist and his Joy was his job. So we are until now [still] together. That's lovely. And when you guys, when you moved did you do the cooking in the house for your husband? Always, always doing the cooking. – but here in Brazil it was very easy to have maid. So she was helping me with the house with the cooking with the children, now its not so easy any more, but it was normal to have somebody to help you And did she cook the same kind of food that your mother would cook? Because if she was a Brazilian maid–

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Yes, the same kind of food. Here in Brazil they eat a lot black beans, and we don't have black beans in Europe, now they have it but at that time no. We a lot of meat, Brazil a very good country for meat. Beef and Chicken. So we have lots of meats. I was doing a lot of how you call it roast beef, beef, and chicken, every day. Every day we have it at noon at night – what about those dishes from those French and Egyptian dishes from from the old country? Did you cook those? No no because we were French even in Egypt. We our nationality our citizenship was French and always Italian food, French food, and here in Brazil, we continue to have the same kind of Food. – and now even now I a lot of vegetables because yes it needs if there is lot of okra lot of green beans, lot of cauliflower. So we had until now we eat a lot of vegetables. healthy and good for you and ochre is delicious as well as. [cross talk] and Ochr it is delicious, it's one of my favorite vegetables.

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Yes, yes a little bit of lemon and garlic. – and so that is an old dish that you have eaten for a very long time I Imagine. Yes, yes. When we arrived here, there was no so many vegetables but they grew up, they planted that. There is a lot of vegetables. Now, don't have it When I eat some of these dishes that I've eaten for a very long time, they often have memories associated with them, and when I eat them, I think of the times in the past that I've eaten them, do you have that same kind of connection to these French dishes and Italian dishes?

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Yes, because as I told you, even my mother when she was cooking with the maid, because we had two or three maids in Egypt, it was normal at that time. So we always remember all my mother was doing that kind of food, my grandmother was doing that kind of food and even my mother-in-law we also do the same lot of potatoes because they were from Germany. Yeah and so when you eat those dishes, do you think about your mother? Oh yes absolutely. Because the good memories. As I told you once, when you have a good table or good food, and you can have a good memories. It's healthy for the mind and for the body. I completely agree. Why do you think –

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And your mother also cook for you? My mother and my father with they both cook especially for celebrations. But I was wondering– Yes. Because you know in Brazil and even in Egypt, the men was not cooking. Its something new, now, from 30 years from now. Yes, the man, are beginning to learn how to cook. Yeah, the husband's the children. I know that Leo, cook a little, my son, also cook a lot with his wife – and how does that make you feel? How does that make you feel seeing Your family, cook these meals, that your mother cooked with you and taught you to cook. I imagine that is–

00:05:54.400 - 00:06:46.480

Its very good but you see a lot of things changes. They have new recipes. They have new kind of ovens. They use electric ovens electric pans. So it's almost the same food but different kind of way to do. Yeah. And so why do you think food has this power to bring people together? Ahh it's normal. It's all over the world. When you have a good food on the table, everybody's happy and with a little wine and speak a lot. So it's a happy moment. and with we're your family now across spread around the world and with the pandemic. How is it like to– Because I know for me, it was very hard. We used to have meals at every on the every Sunday with my grandmother. But then during the pandemic, we had to stop.

00:07:13.200 - 00:08:17.200

You see as I told you when we left Egypt all the family was dived, between France, Egnalnd Isral, and Itatly. So we lose a lot of family they dont die but they were divied, as I told you between France, Israil, England.So the best thing, it was the WhatsApp so we can speak every week every everybody. Birthday and always always and the Jewish holidays, we call together, we speak together. –Do they cook the same dishes from the French and Italian dishes [cross talk] No no they change from England? My cousin cook English food, a lot of fish in France yes, in France they use the same but not so many vegetables. In Israel. Yes, in Israel they have lot of vegetables, they ate the same food and you see in Israel. You have food from all over the world because a lot of Jews came from all over the world. You have Arab food, Jewish food and Germany, France. Many food, many kinds of food. That sounds amazing to have these foods blend together but–

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Exactly. And you see you miss, when you're not going to your grandmother on Sundays. [cross talk] I did I miss it. And you know, you said that Leo told me that he would come with his girlfriend, Alexia to come have lunch with you, what does it, – what does it feel like? Does it feel different to be able to cook for the, your grandchildren, your grandchildren's partners No no its the same they like to eat what I cook. So we stay together and speak, and it was very good. Now, when he come back, we'll have to do it – we like to be together. It is the most important.

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And food allows that to happen. Food brings people together. Yes, we hope in a few months, he will come back to continue his studies here. And when are you are going back home I'm staying In for the full year. So I'm going back home, not until, but my family is coming out in the in the winter break which will be nice. And – I'm sure we'll be brought together by food again. I was wondering about, could you tell me about how your Passover dinner happens and what happens at the Passover dinner and what all the dishes mean? Choice. Yeah. Yeah. We are Jewish. So we have meet normaly, and chicken, and we have the, the, the, how you call matza. And we made like a lasagna with the matza, meat inside the biscuits, and then a little cheese. And then in the oven, We call it a Jewish matza or Paisa and the balls, the meatballs meatballs [speaks to husband in portragees] matzo ball. All over in Europe. Now you can have it. And as you see, we always knew that the Jewish soup. It was antibiotic, they call it. I don't know if it's all right. Good food is a very good for the healthy.

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Definitely the case Clean. This is the best for the health for the body. I know that Passover has lots of significance. In each dish, is meant to mean something, could you tell me about that? No, it doesn't mean too much. The one with the most important is that we will be. We have to be together. And to remember what happened at that time. That's the important thing, you see. Okay? [passue] This ok for you.

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I was wondering though. I just wanted to ask you about when you were in Brazil, where do you buy your food from? Do you go to farmers markets and have you I'm going to places for a long time. No no we have big markets on the street, for example here, it's every Friday. And for my daughter, it's every Sunday. And then the supermarkets are very big in Brazil. Very good, also! I always– andyou see here Brazil we have lot of vegetables and fruit. It's a county that the land is very good, – whatever you need – everything you can have it in in Brazil, it's very easy. You grow everything and everything comes because there is a lot of rain. So the land is good. For example the wife of a cousin from India, she's Jewish from India. When she came to Brazil, she saw the papaya. She saw a little fruit called jabuticaba, that was only India and even pineapple. Now you have it all over the world. Going by plane. But here it is very easy to have them.

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When I go around and I buy and I buy food, especially when I'm buying food for a dish that I'm going to make for my family, for a special occasion. I get very excited about seeing everything and in the shops and especially when I go to a farmers, when I go to a big market and I like to talk to the people, I'm buying it from and tell them about the meals i'm having Exactly. Because you have to know exactly what are you buying and from whome. Have you built up any relationships? Since said you've been going to these markets for years do you know the people who work there very well? Yes, yes. But as you have lots of people in the markets from Italy and Spain and Portugal. Now they are only Brazilians but we speak to together very happy and they became friends then can then ask me for something some information and I answer them. They are beginning to be friend after 20 years together. Every Friday we go, they're happy to see us.

00:14:21.600 - 00:16:05.250

That's really sweet – How is you adapted to shopping in Brazil versus when your mother was in Egypt? And it was imagined very different different for her? No no in Egypt I was very young, and they have the maid there was always buying the food to and vegetables. Here in Brazil. We go out and we buy it. Its different because we lost everything there. Thats the difference, here we go, to the market. We go to the fair to buy. –when I'm cooking these big meals for my family, especially for special occasions It takes a lot of Time. And like you said, you have to ask the people, you have to know what you're buying. How did you manage to do that? You said you worked a lot as well. How did you manage to balance cooking and working? Yes and thats a good question you sometime I was waking up 5 Oclock in the morning, I was being to work 5 oclock in the morning. You can cook one or two days earlier because you have refrigerators now, so you prepare your food at the last moment you finish to do it. I know that is easy because they are teaching you that.

00:16:05.300 - 00:16:29.980

They do the teach, they do teach you that to prep your ingredients and advances If you have ten people to eat on Friday, today is Wensday, you being to cook the chicken and you finish it on Friday morning Mise en place, That's what that they call it. Mise en place is the same day.

00:16:32.500 - 00:17:38.300

Yeah that sounds like a lot of work. It must have been very tiring. you must have— Yes yes, for example this morning I was in the kitchen, now I have my husband helping me, but every two days I have to cook and put in the fridge But working as well at the same time and being so tired, but you're doing it for your family. – that help you in feeling less tired when you know you're doing it to bring your family together. It was it's nice all the family tries but I was beginning sometime very early in the morning and then as I told you we had the maid. So when I was at my job, she give the mea to the children, she was at home. She give them the meal and I tell you I have good children and now good grandchildren. They are very good.

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And I was wondering, – have your children and your grandchildren cooked for you? no, no, you know, you know why frist of all they were very young, small then they really study a lot. So they now they grow up and they cook for themselves. They had the mother. You don't need to cook for me and Julie. Oh, but you spent so much Okey, I think thats finshed now cause I have to leave.

00:18:13.300 - 00:19:06.500

Okay, no worries Daisy. That was very interesting. One last thing is, I remember you mentioning, there's a chicken dish that near the Leo loves with turmeric and roasted vegetables. It sounds delicious. I was wondering if you could send me the recipe? You see, it's very easy, you put the chicken, the potatoes, the garlic, onion, and turmeric, and sides everything in the oven. Big pieces of chicken, three or five potatoes in a half. Three or four onions, cutting lot of garlic. Big garlic and turmeric sides. That's it, that's it. and I guess sometimes I use green leaves also,

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okay? And do you– I cover with alliuminium and put it in the oven. One hour and its finshed and the juice from the chicken cook the potato and onions. I can almost smell it already. I can imagine that very distinct smell of the roasted garlic. And the turmeric that would work so well together. And then the meaty juices of the chicken. Everything goes together. That's the point because when you it together, the juice come together.

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Does that smell? Bring back memories whenever you cook that? Yes. Yeah, it sounds delicious. I'm going to, I'm going to try and I'm going to try and make that dish and see and see what Leo says if I am up to your standards or no. I don't think it will be Yeah. And I'd love to know what he thinks about and if that brings back [cross talk 'very good'], if it if it reminds, if it reminds him of Brazil and you and the family and home, thank you, thank you so much. I have to leave now.

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Of course, of course, I'm sorry about the technical issues. [cross talk 'dont worry'] It was lovely to talk to you. Best of luck on the game tomorrow. It was a pleasure to talk to you about everything about life. very interesting to hear you've had a fascinating life and it's amazing too and I'm glad to be able to record it. Thank you. And lots of kiss to your family also

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Of course and to yours. Thank you bye bye [blows kiss]