I'm a recent "transplant" to Illinois, having lived my whole life in North Alabama up till now. I haven't lived through a Yankee winter yet - it'll be interesting to see how I deal with snow! I love cooking the Southern staples I grew up on...that's truly comfort food for me. I try to lighten up my Mom's recipes when I can, but sometimes I get a craving that only the real thing can satisfy. That's when my husband comes home to fried chicken, biscuits and gravy, fried okra with green tomatoes, turnip greens, juicy sliced tomatoes, washed down with plenty of sweet tea! I took over holiday cooking relatively early, when I was 24 years old, and have been doing it ever since. I love making everybody's favorite dishes, but I try to add one or two new dishes each time. Some don't make the cut, but some of those experiments have found a permanent place on the menu. I have a cousin who is a fantastic and adventurous cook. After enjoying a wonderful meal at her home, I spent weeks poring over recipe books until I came up with a menu that would be up to her standards. I prepared olive crostini for an appetizer, followed by roasted pork loin with spicy jezebel sauce, creamy mushroom risotto, and chilled marinated tomatoes. But the star of the evening was the apricot torte. It was a gigantic pain to prepare, with 8 layers and a complicated filling, but oh my GOODNESS, it was good! That would have to be the Christmas that I was putting a giant pan of cornbread dressing into the oven. I still don't know how it happened, but it came to rest upside down on the door of the stove. Words can't begin to describe the mess. Luckily, I'd put a smaller pan of uncooked dressing in the freezer earlier. Everybody had to settle for smaller portions, but at least they had SOMETHING!