Being an independent person since I was a kid, I started learning how to cook from my mother so I could do everything myself. When I left home to join the military, my mother gave me a Betty Crocker Cookbook. I made a few meals from the recipes, but always enjoyed just throwing things together without actually following any directions. I've cooked meals for my unit(s), friends, family, and loved ones, and have never had a complaint, except from myself on occasion. So I suppose I would be considered an "experimental" cook. Due to my cooking style, I've never made the same dish exactly the same, but they always turn out delicious. Italian, Seafood, and Mexican food. Getting together with the family on Christmas, and having a wonderful ten course Chinese dinner. Being that my mother is German, I'm not sure where this tradition originated, but she has always been an excellent cook, so we never asked. I think my best meals were made on a double hot plate while I was stationed in Germany. Nearly every Sunday, I would make a huge pot of homemade spaghetti for everyone in the barracks. As long as the chief got some, he would look the other way because I wasn't supposed to cook in the barracks. I've given up on baking cookies. Whenever I've tried, they've almost always come out as hockey pucks.