Rachel Alejandro cooks up a dream

MANILA, Philippines – I will never forget what I consider to be the best, most sincere Miss Universe Q&A of all time:

Q: If there would be no rules in your life in one day, and you could do something outrageous, what would it be and why?

A: I would eat everything. You don’t understand. I will eat everything twice.

That was Miss USA Brook Lee in the Miss Universe pageant of 1997. Her wit and candor won her the crown. I remember laughing in agreement as she said it. Her answer resonated with many of us watching that day because it was just so natural, so true. They say that guys think that every girl’s dream is to find the perfect guy. They are wrong. Every girl’s dream is to eat without getting fat.

With a little know-how and preparation, that’s not impossible!

A few years ago, my chef sister and I started writing a book of healthy recipes and fitness tips. Our goal was to be able to share with as many people as possible two things we discovered for ourselves:

1. Eating the foods you love and maintaining a slim figure do not have to be mutually exclusive.

2. With just a little bit of planning, preparing nutritious meals needs not be expensive, difficult nor time-consuming.

When we started, we had no idea how to write a proper cookbook. Someone told us we needed to find a book editor, a good food stylist and photographer. With no financial backing nor anyone to help us put it all together, it seemed like a pipe dream.

For a long time, we felt stuck. The project was going nowhere. But then all of a sudden it just came together — increased confidence in my own writing and Barni’s growing collection of recipes and experience as a food stylist and columnist for Appetite Magazine. My manager Girlie Rodis mentioned it to some friends, then bam! National Bookstore told her they wanted to publish it. I guess there really is a perfect time for everything.

We didn’t know how and when it would happen. We just knew in our hearts that it would. But like Martin Luther King once said: Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step.

Thankfully, faith combined with hard work eventually paid off. Just four years after we initially conceived the idea, we are now about to become published authors. – Rappler.com

(The Sexy Chef Cookbook will soon be available in stores and for order at The Sexy Chef website. You are all invited to the launch at the National Bookstore outlet in Glorietta Mall, Makati, on Dec 4, 2013 at 3 pm.)

Rachel Alejandro is a singer, actress, entrepreneur and soon also an author. She is co-owner and VP for Marketing of the health food delivery service, The Sexy Chef OBC 5 Star, Inc. Visit www.thesexychef.ph or follow @thesexychefph