Natelege's earliest memories of cooking began as a little girl as she sat and watched in awe of her own mother Helen, her grandmother Virginia and great aunt's Reval and Saluda in their private sanctuaries, their kitchens. When she found herself many years later, at one of the lowest points in her life staring down divorce after only two years of marriage, her kitchen became her sanctuary. Through faith, family, food and cooking she found healing. Virginia & Co., her full service catering company was birthed from her desire to share her joy of cooking and the healing she experienced through cooking.
Her first cookbook is her love letter to her ancestors; to the art of cooking which has being a tool in her healing; and to the amazing men and women like her own father who cultivate and farm the land that produces the food we eat. The recipes in the cookbook are an extension of that love letter and honor her heritage that includes the Gullah Islands in South Carolina, the farm lands in eastern North Carolina and the James River in Prince George County in Virginia. Her style of cooking has been moulded by her culture, travels, and the people she has met along the way. This cookbook includes her very best recipes, tips, and the personal stories that helped shaped her journey.