I have been cooking and baking since I was nine years old. My first big accomplishment was making bread. My mother discouraged me because it took too much work. I persisted. It turned out so well she then encouraged me to enter the County Fair. I won a blue ribbon (first prize). I've been at it ever since--nearly 48 years! I love to bake! Breads, muffins, cookies, pies. Some of my favorite dishes include chicken and dumplings, scratch soups, casseroles. I invent new dishes all the time. Sometimes they come out so well I write them down. They might even appear here. Fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy and corn on the cob (yellow, not white), prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, Beef Wellington, banana cake, Christmas cutout cookies, potato salad, waffles, fruit pies, German chocolate cake and, of course, chicken with dumplings. I made an authentic all-Italian dinner with gnocchi for my brother and nephew. Everything came out perfect! They thought it was normal. I was shocked! Once I made Thanksgiving dinner with roast turkey for 30 by myself. There was plenty of food and all 16 dishes came out right. I think by far the worst was when I had hot oil in a pan and it burst into flames. It was so intense I could not cover it fully. By the time I got the fire extinguisher, the kitchen was on fire. I had to call the fire department. Only time in over 40 years that ever happened. I was lucky the FD got there so quick and put it out with minimal damage to the cabinets. Dinner was, needless to say, ruined.