There is nothing better than seeing "yum" on someone's face when they try my cooking! Always, always cook with love or it won't turn out right. Pasta with homemade tomato sauce and meatballs, roast chicken, squash, fish, brownies, cookies and matzoh ball soup, anything with mushrooms! My family likes to create traditional Lithuanian dishes during the holidays. Stuffed cabbage, potato kugel, dumplings and grated beets with sour cream are some of our favorites. I have invented several successful recipes such as pasta with diced tomatoes, spinach and shrimp, as well as seared pork roast with rosemary and garlic that is finished in the oven. One of my favorites is baked halibut with a tomato-tarragon compote. I really love to crack open a bottle of wine while cooking and make a big mess in my kitchen! No wonder the dog always wants to stand right underfoot while I am cooking! One of the worst cooking tragedies was in college when I didn't defrost a frozen chicken enough. The giblets were still frozen inside so I figured I'd just stick it in the oven and pull them out as it cooked. No such luck! Had to toss the whole thing out since the ouside burned and the inside was still frozen solid. Another tragedy was when I tried to roast a duck. I had no idea how to deal with all the fat that came out in the pan and when it overflowed the oven caught fire. The apartment smelled like scorched duck fat for a week! Definitely had to get take-out that night!