For Chrissy Teigen, cooking is about more than putting food on the table — after the birth of her first child, Luna, it was a means of healing. She suffered from postpartum depression, and “it was physically hard to get up,” she says in an exclusive interview for Good Housekeeping's February 2019 issue. “My bones hurt.” Her mom made simple dishes, hoping to lure Chrissy to take a bite. “One of the ways I knew I was healing was that I found my way back into the kitchen,” says Chrissy in her second cookbook, Cravings: Hungry for More. “Starting to cook again really helped me get back on my feet and get back into normal life.”
Cooking is a safe haven for Chrissy — as evident by her two bestselling cookbooks and new, affordable Cravings by Chrissy Teigen cookware line at Target — that helps her stay centered and focused on her family, including husband John Legend and their two children Luna, 2, and Miles, 7 months. It’s part of her overall philosophy for living a happy life, which, not surprisingly, she’s willing to share.
Cherish where you came from.
I’m so much like my dad (Chrissy was raised by her father, Ron, and mother, Vilailuck). My dad and I are emotional, and we can be stubborn, and we have this need for justice. I was very much a daddy’s girl when it came to food we’d cook together — meat; potatoes; heavy, hearty dishes. But I was always fascinated by things my [Thai] mom was cooking, so I have a good balance between both parents.
Give your body the care it deserves.
I think, in a way, we’ve forgotten what a regular body looks like. There are people out there who are struggling, and I’m struggling, and it’s okay to come to terms with realizing it’s going to be a bit of a journey. I’m not blind: I see my body, I see the difference in shape, I see that I gained weight. But I also see with those same eyes that I have a beautiful baby boy, and an amazing little girl, and I am very happy. This is a new thing that I can change within my mind, that I don’t have to be swimsuit model anymore. I get to be a mommy, cook, and meet incredible people, and I’m happy to be going through this transition.
See yourself through your kid's eyes.
Luna’s bringing out so much of my personality that I was too anxious to share in the outside world before. Now, I get to be goofy and silly. Luna has this crazy obsession with having me do her nails, so when you find things that they love, you turn that into entertainment, like “Oh my gosh, let’s have a tea party with lion and Big Bird. Pick a nail color and Mommy will do your nails.” She finds joy in these little things and they're the kind of thing that she will talk about all week at school, and I have a feeling that it’ll be the kind of thing that she’s going to remember when she’s older.
Cut corners, guilt-free.
In my first cookbook (Cravings: Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat was released in 2016.), I can’t believe I said I wanted you to do everything yourself. ‘Fry your own wontons!’ Two kids later, I apologize. My new motto these days is to go with the flow: It actually teaches you to be a better person and not be so neurotic about time and schedules. Whatever is going to work to make a great day, go with it. I’m very much a person who likes to be present.
Try These Brunch Recipes Straight from Chrissy's Kitchen
Don't have the same fight twice.
It helps that John and I fight very differently. I get very passionate and loud, and he’s very much a diffuser. But in the end, we’re both apologizers; we don’t like to dwell on the same thing. A lot of our fights revolve around — we don’t have them often — scheduling, communication, or “You told me this, but I was holding Luna, and I was baking cookies at the same time, how was I supposed to listen to this and have a conversation?!” I've learned to listen to what the other person is upset about and try to make sure that I'm doing everything to not let that same, dumb fight happen again.
Find balance for your emotional health.
After Miles, I’m dealing with anxiety issues. At two and a half years old, Luna’s a busybody and I love to be a kid with her, but I also have this little tiny being (Miles) that needs quiet time and nurturing. Balancing these two things can be really tough, and I try to make sure I have separate time for both of them. I’m having to face my anxiety more by leaving the house to bring Luna to preschool. Every little bit is making me more comfortable.
Do what calms you.
That’s where the cooking comes in, that’s John and Chrissy time, where we get to have a glass of wine and cook together. It’s quiet and peaceful. And then there's the 45-minute drive to school singing Frozen together, that’s a calming time for me. Honestly, the things that make me happy are so little. It’s truly, like, having a new episode of Below Deck to watch, or a new episode of The Affair, that is where I find happiness.
Refresh Your Kitchen with Cravings by Chrissy Teigen
Aluminum Frying Pan Set
Tidbit Bowls with Wood Tray
Silicone Turner
This story originally appeared in the February 2019 issue of Good Housekeeping.
