Welcome to the table
of my life
– Mariaelena and…
That little rascal her
best friend
How strange it is to talk about yourself.
Or rather, how do you impartially describe yourself?
The objective data says:
Mariaelena Maisto
27 years old, Naples
I celebrate life on August 29th
breakfast planner for passion
teacher of Literature, History and Philosophy by profession.
Mmmh! It’s a bit of a redundant presentation, isn’t it? Too much for an identity card and almost insufficient to let you get to know me a little more, so I’ll try again and let my heart, that rascal of a best friend, come into the picture.
I’m Mariaelena, (for my friends Mari , with an A, please, which sounds sweeter), exaggeratedly romantic, with my head, often, or perhaps, most of the time, in the clouds and dreamy eyes.
7 days a week I’m in a good mood, on the 8th I eat a pizza to celebrate.
At breakfast with Mariaelena
“How did all this come about?” is the question I get asked most frequently…
I clearly remember that as a child, all I needed to jump for joy was one thing: Anto’s crêpes! How they tempted me, I loved them! It was my favourite reward after an afternoon of homework. Dante, alas, would have placed me in the 3rd circle, where the souls of the greedy reside! And in fact, ‘Sweet or savoury?’ It’s my chocolate-stained smile that answers.
I began to prepare breakfasts, from time to time, with more care and attention, setting the kitchen table at home for my friends and relatives. Self-taught and in a simple way, according to my taste and indulging this constant desire to make life sweet, experimenting, but mainly, making mistakes; this is the trick for the most original creations, because beautiful things require effort. My best sweets were my worst weeps.
Then the name “Breakfast with Mariaelena” was born with my first business card which was really funny to think about, I was about twenty years old… And now I have my website in my hands, all mine, by me and for me, I feel like crying. I would like to hug that girl, sometimes a little too insecure, I would simply like to whisper to her “you’re good, you’re doing well, don’t be afraid to listen to your heart and continue to cultivate your passions, which one day will become your job”.
And while my desserts were baking in the oven, I continued my studies which have been the constant in my life since I was little; studying and learning has unfailingly made me free and happy. I obtained a three-year degree in Educational Sciences, and two master’s degrees, one in Pedagogical Sciences, the other in Modern Linguistics to become a teacher at lower secondary schools. Today I admit that I would also have liked to study Gastronomic Sciences, and who knows, I might not rule it out in the future!
In March 2022 I chose to attend the Pastry Techniques Course at ”Alma”, a prestigious cooking school in Italy which was an absolutely enriching and educational experience, I would recommend it to those who have not yet gained Adequate field experience in the pastry sector. In the same year, in September, I moved to Paris where I worked as a pastry chef assistant at an Italian restaurant, and here I got to know laboratory life in its entirety: 9 hours of work and 30 minutes of break (when you got back on schedule!).
So many experiences and each deeply important and necessary.
My way of making desserts has taken form in this time: genuine and creative, without pre-established time spaces, because a dessert needs time, attention, patience, and above all it is good for those who make it and those who receive it. It has the benefit of liberating people’s creative expression and allows you to communicate your feelings, without using words!
I would say my favourite, and perhaps essential, way to say “I love you”, without adding objects to our lives, which are saturated.
I prefer to look at the world with a good and sweet gaze which was undoubtedly given to me by my mother, the character Anto who many people know on Instagram. I owe to her many nuances of my character which today distinguish me. Anto, as I affectionately call her, is my fortress, my salvation for life.
I value everything that happens to me, and for this reason I like to surround myself with people who do the same. I have to say, there are few things I can’t stand, perhaps most of all superficiality, when I meet someone who has the depth of a puddle, and people who don’t know altruism it really hurts me. Then I hate frozen croissants, too sweet chocolate, at least 80% dark please and I really can’t tolerate cold cappuccino.
Another funny thing about me? When I’m sad I notice it immediately because I don’t eat breakfast. And you will say “what could it be?”, I have only skipped breakfast three times in my life, so you can imagine!
PARIS
If I think of my favourite happy moment I always imagine the same way: sitting at a table having breakfast. If in Paris then…
I’ll tell you more about this city, the place of my peace.
My dear Paris, you have been my shelter and you have been important for me.
You gave me serenity when I didn’t have any for a minute, you were fear, growth, responsibility. You were something that I struggle to explain in words. With you I learned to cook, to dose the detergent in the washing machine that made too much foam, to sleep alone every night, to not have to rely on anyone and to have only Mariaelena to hug. I learned to do without the superfluous, to metaphorize the seven floors of the infernal stairways up to my apartment, to lock the door, to do the shopping and have the points card. I learned imperceptible things but which I will carry with me every day.
I promise you that I will come back to you whenever I need you.
Let’s get to coffee, strictly bitter for me, about my defects…
I’m fussy about food, some would say annoying, but in this I don’t want to be otherwise! I like precise things and I am a demanding person.
I’m often the laughing stock of the table because I order pizza accompanied by salad for example; I’m organised, perhaps too much, and when traveling I can’t leave without my itineraries set out perfectly (how I love doing them!); I’m chronically indecisive, if there are two desserts, one with pistachio and the other with white chocolate, I want to try them both and trust me, I can. I’ve never liked choosing.
I get bored easily and
appearances don’t deceive me.
C’est la vie.
Welcome to the table of my life.
As main courses I can offer you:
empathy, reciprocity, creativity, love, care, sweetness and affection.
I would like to be there in your special moments, collecting memories and making them precious.
Because the only thing we have is the love given and I deeply believe in gestures, through which we are able to speak even before words to convey our every emotion.
Mariaelena
