i have always been what i call a finesse cook; i pride myself on being able to throw things together and make it work. however, i recently discovered allrecipes.com and am addicted!! truly i am; pretty much every day during the week i consult the site for what to make. i often change or adjust the recipes according to what i know will (or won't) work. i look forward to posting some of my own recipes as soon as i work on accurately determining ingredient specifications. unfotunately, i am too busy finding new faves. the hubby doesn't eat beef so i stick to chicken, turkey & fresh fish. i also use lo-fat, no-fat, egg white, butter sub, whole wheat wherever possible. my favorite things to drink are red wine, mainly pinot noir, zin and red meritage. and a good cold martini! hmm, traditions? i use my mother's recipes for sour cream pound cake, lemon bars, oatmeal cookies. various soups. not many dinner party situations. but i have prepared thanksgiving dinner on my own several times. probably the one when i tried to make a birthday cake from scratch for my mom and it came out green and tasting strangely (and horribly) like fish. but hey, i was only like, eleven.