The culinary enthusiast is employed in a healthcare institution, but preparing and styling food has become more than a hobby for her. She has been writing recipes for a supplement of a Slovenian newspaper, and she usually also places her – most often baked – treats in front of her camera.

Vintage style for homeliness
Her photographs exude the warmth of a home; she abides by the rustic vintage style. "I guess it is the most dear to my heart. I love lace, old spoons and forks, anything with a story behind it. I have started my collection years ago, much earlier than I have started writing my blog. My grandmother and my mother have given me a lot of old things, and I have bought a lot of them myself, on my travels, at flea markets, in shops… But I don't spend a lot on them. Most of my friends already know what will make me most happy: an old piece of kitchenware (it can be a plate, a pot – anything!). I am very protective of my collection. My kitchen is not big, but you can store a lot of accessories in the cabinets. What doesn't fit is stored in another small room (laughter)."

When we praised her charming settings, as she obviously has a special talent for that, she remains modest: "Do you really think so? I don't consider it anything special, but I enjoy doing it. For me the look of food on the plate has always been very important. By that I don't mean it should look as in a top five-star restaurant – my aim is that a person who reads a recipe and sees a photograph next to the text can recreate it at home – the reaction I am looking for is that the reader takes a look and thinks 'Well, I could eat/cook this!'"

And what about the photos she publishes in her blog Cinnamon and Thyme, and even more frequently on her Instagram profile with the same name? Has she learned by experience? "Lately I have been neglecting my blog. The weather is too nice, and pulls you out, into the nature (laughter). Consequently more photos land on Instagram. I don't have education in photography, I simply bought a camera and started taking photos. I am considering taking a course in photography, as I usually act on a hunch when making a photo. I don't process my photos, nor would I know how to do it. But I have learned that that kind of knowledge would really come in useful."

Ana's blog is titled after two spices: cinnamon and thyme. Why these two? "Well, it was rather complicated to decide on the right title for my blog! I think it was one of the biggest problems when I was starting. I am a great lover of cats, so I wanted to unite my two passions in the title, but it simply didn't work. Anyway, I am writing about food, and not about cats, so in the end I chose my two favourite spices for the name."

She has her sweet tooth under (self)control
From the collection of dishes we can admire at her blog can be gathered that she has a sweet tooth … But we are constantly bombarded with warnings about the health hazard of sugar. Was that the reason she has started preparing healthier, also fresh (raw) desserts? "That's true. I eat everything. And I find it difficult to control myself around sweets. People close to me could tell you that sometimes it is quite difficult to stop me! Actually, I don't make that many raw dishes (when speaking of desserts), but I try to bake healthier sweets. I use less, or even no sugar, less white flour, only high quality ingredients… I still believe it is of utmost importance to control oneself. You eat one piece, and that's that. Sometimes I manage, but I still have to work on my self-discipline..."

She admits she is already silently considering the idea of her own cook book. "Perhaps sometimes in the future. When, and if, the time is right. At the moment I am discussing a renovation of my blog with a friend of mine, and I am really looking forward to it." says Ana. She has an idol, but none of the famous chefs regularly appearing on TV screens. She has found her role model in her own family. "My granny loved to cook, and she cooked very well. My love of cooking is probably her influence. I like people who like to cook, and they don't have to be professional chefs. I love simple dishes." If she had to choose her most favourite dish, only one, which would that be? "A creamy soup, or buckwheat 'žganci'."

Does she always eat her breakfast nicely served in lovely little dishes, or is it like the proverb about shoemaker's children and their shoes says… Or, if we ask a direct question: does she sometimes eat yoghurt directly from the plastic cup? "Well, of course I do! (laughter) It all depends on how much time I have, and also whether I feel like decorating the table. If I am in a hurry in the morning, no decoration of food is on the agenda."

Alenka Klun, translated by G. K.