I'm a registered nurse and a school nurse. I have a daugher who is 8 and is just starting to become interested in cooking. My daugher and I are planning an organic vegetable garden together and we're looking forward to cooking with the vegetables we've grown. Unique salads, anything grilled, one dish/one pot meals and casseroles-especially during winter. I love recipes that combine different fruits with meat, chicken, or fish. Every year my family comes over for our Christmas Eve dinner. It's nothing fancy, but when I try to change it everyone gets upset so I don't even suggest that anymore. It's always the same menu: crab dip with crackers, mixed green salad, baked stuffed sole, and ziti with Italian sausage and broccoli in an olive oil sauce. My Mom brings her homemade Christmas cookies and cheese cake for dessert. It's all very casual and relaxed. It's a great night. After many attempts I am finally able to make a good gravy from pan drippings and also a good pie crust from scratch. "eggplant meatballs" A recipe I tried 17 years ago, when my husband and I were first married. I was 22 and still learning how to cook. They were beyond awful. My husband is still haunted by memories of those meatballs...enough said.