My first attempt at cooking was when I was 12 years old. I made a pumpkin pie, easy as it gets, and since I was the big eater of 4 boys to a single Mom that worked third shift, I taught myself to cook so that my family would have meals to eat. Clam Chowder, anything on the BBQ and baking. Thanksgiving Dinners. Anyone who cooks knows how difficult it can be to make all the parts of a big meal " come together" at the same time. I pride myself on this. Chocolate souffle when I was in my early 20's. I have never been able to make a decent batch of fudge. It's my albatross.