I always loved to be in the kitchen with my Mom, watching her cook. As I grew older, I loved to experiment in the kitchen and loved to bake. Once I got out on my own... I realized just how much I LOVE to cook. Unfortunately, I don't get much of a chance to cook for OTHERS, but I love it still the same. My favorite thing to cook is Italian - mainly because that's what I love to eat. ;p I love to try new recipes though - I visit this site probably five out of seven days a week just doing random searches for recipes that sound tasty! I come from a "pot luck" type of family which has really helped me to grow with my cooking since I've been out on my own. I have the opportunity to add to the family dinners - and so far, have had great results! :) I decided to bring stuffed mushrooms (first time ever made) to my family Thanksgiving dinner. I didn't think anyone but my sister and myself would eat them; I came home with only seven left from a batch of 24! I had been "assisting" my Mom in baking cookies since I was able to walk & talk at the same time... I was probably around 10-12 when she let me bake cookies by myself while she went grocery shopping (I had been begging for days). I was making a double-batch and, it made sense to my oh-so-logical mind at the time, figured I then would have to double the length of time for them to bake! I realized my mistake when they started to REALLY burn...