Alexander the great
Winter sun streams through the windows of Stephanie Alexander’s riverside apartment. Crumbs of a chocolate cake devoured by her granddaughter, Juliet, dot the kitchen bench where the culinary pioneer is mulling over what to cook for dinner. She’s eating alone this evening but the table will be perfectly set, a glass of wine neatly poured, and dinner will be savoured slowly, as it is every night.
“I get very cranky when I hear people say they don’t have time to cook. You can make a wonderful meal in no time,” she says, reeling off the mouth-watering details of ratatouille and seared prawns she whipped up for herself last night.
“Seven minutes was all it took and it was delicious. It gives me such a sense of joy to sit and eat good food, and I look forward to it.”
From her kitchen bench, the much-loved cook, author, philanthropist and educator looks out onto the abundant herb garden she has planted on her deck; a giant Eucalypt from the banks of the Yarra below stretches and dances in the background. She happily admits to wiling away the hours in that sunny spot, cooking and creating, thinking, entertaining.
“Honestly, I love it. This is where I am happiest,” she says as her eldest daughter, Lisa, hand picks a huge bouquet of sage, rosemary and thyme to take home for her roast
