The back story of Dates & Avocados - Part 1

Hello guys!

As some of you may know, two months ago I moved to Meizhou, a small city in Guangdong province, south China.
Last year I lived in Shanghai, where I landed after two years in Houston, Texas… Which is where I ended up after moving from Barcelona.
I know, I know… it’s kind of confusing – even for me!

Let’s rewind. Whether you’ve been following my journey for a while or have just heard about my work, you may be wondering why I travel so much. Lots of people move around for personal or professional reasons, but how many chefs do you see wandering around with their kitchens?

So I wrote this post to answer the most common questions I get from you. Hope you enjoy reading it!

Quick background…

My husband is a professional football (soccer) player. A year ago, he signed with a Chinese team. His profession is the main reason we’ve moved around so much for the last few years. He was playing for an American team, and before that he was on a Spanish team.
When we decided to move to the US for the first time, I was 30 years old. I knew the next few years would be completely unpredictable. I didn’t want to look for a new job in the States that I would have to quit when we moved again.
At the time, in Spain, I had a stable job, a monthly salary… and a feeling of deep dissatisfaction. But after quitting my job as a physics and math teacher in Barcelona, I realized I had no more excuses. I had to start doing something I was truly passionate about.

I remember the day in Houston, sitting with my dad in a library, having no idea what to do with my life, surrounded by cookbooks (as usual), when I told him: “Dad, food is what I’ve always loved the most. Don’t you think I should do something with that?” As always, he supported me. We spent the next few days driving around the city, looking into every culinary school in Houston. Although I thought I was too old (!) and I had problems owing to my visa situation, I was finally able to enroll in the baking and pastry program of Houston Community College. I had no experience, just tons of fears and insecurities, including the language barrier. I also realized there was no chance I could work in a restaurant or bakery, owing to our nomad lives. I must admit I was really confused at that time! Twice I almost quit, but somehow I knew I was in the right place, so I promised myself I would finish and get my pastry degree.

During my time at the pastry school, I was so obsessed with healthy eating that I couldn’t enjoy anything we were baking! That was frustrating, because I have a major sweet tooth. In fact, I was appalled to learn how many junk ingredients went into the desserts I used to love. But I was lucky to have a great chef for some of my courses, who advised me to experiment with different ingredients and come up with alternative, “guilt-free” recipes.

Meanwhile because my courses required it, I was taking tons of photos. At first I just used my phone, but soon I developed a deep interest in style and composition. I posted pictures on my personal Instagram account, with the sole intention of sharing with my friends.

I had almost finished my pastry courses when I discovered a famous plant-based culinary school and decided to continue my studies there.
I signed up for two online courses, and it was then that I rescued an old camera I had, bought a 50 mm lens and began to take pictures of every recipe and assignment. At the same time, I started a new Instagram account to share it all. That’s how @datesandavocados was born. Ever since, I’ve thought about nothing but food and photography!

I traveled to Belfast (Maine) and New York to complete my plant-based chef education. It was the most inspiring and challenging period of my life. My Instagram account grew and grew. I shared the raw cakes and desserts I was making at home. As my photography skills improved, I decided to upgrade my equipment with a Canon 5D and a macro lens.

Wanna know more? Keep reading the end of the story here