“The world is full of amusing roads. Just go outdoors!” With this simple philosophy Rositsa Ivanova has left her predictable life and has found paradise in nature.

Her beautifully arranged plates and inborn refinement have made her the favorite the TV reality show Master Chef’s audiences. So she finished the TV race only a small lump of butter away from the winner and from the prize worth 50 thousand euro. Rositsa though is not unhappy with the missed chance and says that her chief ingredient when preparing food has always been love.

At 25, she has got everything – a prestigious degree in political science, a well-paid job of an IT specialist, a bohemian home downtown Sofia. Nevertheless she decided to leave all this behind that settle on an organic farm near the town of Sopot. Moving to the mountain she was first of all impressed by the kindness of people. A year later Rositsa debunks the myth of boring village life:

“Can you imagine the sensation of being woken up by the wonderful scents of chamomile and lime tree, of having deer, rabbits, cats, dogs and other loveliness in the yard, and in the morning instead of waiting in the traffic, enjoy a cup of coffee in the garden?” Rositsa takes care of the fresh products on the farm and coordinates the work of agronomists and animal breeders.

Her main job however is in a complex in Sopot where she is the chef. There she applies her philosophy of healthy eating shared extensively on her culinary blog.

“In the complex we serve clean and healthy food, because we are certain about the origin of the ingredients”, Rositsa Ivanova tells us. “I am very proud that the products are local, i.e. there is nothing like cheese from France and fish from the Atlantic. Everything comes from a radius of maximum 30 km. The recipes however are updated and food is made in tune with the latest healthy standards – we mostly marinate the vegetables on the farm rather than subject them to thermal processing; we use coconut oil, do not fry, cook on steam or in other ways that help preserve maximum amounts of healthy substances.”

Apart from giving priority to the quality of products, Rositsa also accentuates the way they are served. So she defines herself as a chef with an aesthetic slant.

Beautifully served food is the first thing that makes an impression when we see a plate, she argues. “We begin eating with the eyes, so for me it is extremely important to make every dish look like a work of art: no matter whether we serve simple stuffed peppers – if arranged properly they turn into a delicious Bulgarian meal served with sophistication.”

Under the tunes of jazz music and with a glass of wine in hand – these are the ideal conditions to create a perfect dish, Rositsa claims. She discovered her culinary gift early in life:

“I found out I loved cooking as a little girl. Because I lived near school, when I was 14-15 years old, I literally ran back home during the big break to make a cake or something else. At that time I began to prepare even more challenging menus - for example Christmas dinner. You know how vital it is for a housewife to be able to arrange the table and meet the guests, and when all this is entrusted to a girl, she takes the task very seriously. Of course, I started with praise, but I have also swallowed a lot of constructive criticism. So, from a very young age, I realized that I was willing to cook, but I never thought I would do that for a living.”

Rossitsa Ivanova has recently won another prestigious diploma, from the first of its kind in the world Gelato University near Bologna and was back with a gelato machine. But the icy dessert she offers this summer is with blueberries, raspberries and blackberries from the Balkan Range, as well as with cream and unpasteurized milk from the farm. And because she likes to challenge herself she is currently testing her stamina. “When someone says, ‘I cannot’, the time comes when I can and want more”, Rositsa adds. And she still wants to wake up early, feel the satisfaction of the past day and end it with friends and plenty of laughter.

English Daniela Konstantinova