Hello and Welcome!
Hi, I'm Agnieszka and I am the creator, photographer and recipe developer behind Wholly Tasteful, a healthy recipes and homemaking blog. I am also a wife and a mom to 3 beautiful children (aged 11, 9 and 5) who never cease to keep me busy. I was born and raised in Poland but since 2009 I've been lucky enough to live and work in Maine. My husband and I love old houses so in 2015 we bought our dream home - an 1852 farmhouse that we've been renovating ever since, one room at a time.
I love feeding people and as a true Polish mother, I always make too much food. I like to have options!
My blogging story
As a little girl I loved looking through cookbooks. I'm actually not sure why because I was a world-class picky eater! Nonetheless, I was fascinated by recipes and images of food. I remember this one Chinese cookbook my mom got as a gift and I was dreaming of getting the exotic sounding ingredients (impossible to obtain in Poland in the 1990's) and making all the delicious sweet, sticky, spicy and sour foods.
I learned to cook from the strong women in my life: my mom, grandmas and aunts. They didn't actually teach me. I watched and participated in the prep. I chopped mushrooms and onions. I held a hand mixer for what seemed like hours whipping eggs for the lightest, cloud-like Polish sponge cake. Food and cooking were always present and home cooked meals have always been made with love.
As I got into high school and college, I traveled a lot and experienced cuisines from different countries and regions. After going to Italy at 16, I went to my local library and picked up an Italian cookbook. I spent hours in the kitchen teaching myself how to make lasagne noodles, authentic pizzas and pasta sauces.
Ever since then cooking and sharing food has been my passion, my creative outlet and definitely my favorite way to relax.
After many years of following various food blogs and making my own, improved versions of recipes, I decided to start a blog myself. I didn't really know how to use a camera or run a food blog but after my husband gave me a proper DSLR camera for Christmas in 2021, I knew there were no more excuses and I got a domain and started writing posts in the same week. And that's how Wholly Tasteful was born.
What will you find on Wholly Tasteful?
- Mostly healthy, easy to follow, family-friendly recipes and meal ideas
- Healthy baking ideas
- Charcuterie Board tutorials
- Polish-inspired recipes
- Email newsletter where I share newest recipes, life update and favorite products
My favorite recipes
My Approach to Food and Living Healthy
My food philosophy is to eat seasonal, whole, nutrient-dense foods that make you feel good. I don't believe in dieting and since our family has no food allergies or sensitivities, we eat everything in moderation. I'm a huge foodie and I love eating out, trying all sorts of ethnic foods and desserts (especially everything chocolate) when I'm out and about. However, being healthy and feeling great are my top wellness priorities so at home I tend to cook clean, healthy meals that taste amazing.
Being Polish, my family is my absolute everything, so my idea of being a mom is to create a home that feels safe, beautiful and always smells like something good is cooking. When I'm not working or taking care of kids, you can find me in my kitchen conjuring up and testing new recipes, chalk painting old furniture, designing something or decorating our house for whatever holiday or birthday party is coming next. All these things make me happy and I'm here to inspire you to be well, healthy and make good food that your kids will eat. Do what makes YOU happy, surround yourself with kind people and find your life balance!
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. If you have a question or comment, please feel free to email me at [email protected] I can't wait to hear from you!
FAQs
I've always known that I want take on a project related to food and cooking. I considered opening a restaurant or starting a PhD in food anthropology but neither of these ideas worked out so instead I started a food blog. I love every minute of it!
Agnieszka is pronounced ag-nee-eshh-kuh. It's a Polish name and quite popular in Poland.
For the most part, yes! My kids are my most important recipe testers and reviewers, ecpecially for healthy baking recipes. Of course they don't like everything because they're just kids but they're always eager to try new foods. Their favorite blog recipes include these No Bake Cake Pops, 2 Banana Muffins and my smoothie bowls.
Hands down spaghetti bolognese. I could eat buckets of it, sprinkled with a copious amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese.