Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. Food brings people together, and when that's not possible, it's simply relaxing to plan a meal and then prepare it. I have a friend, Larry, who is an outstanding cook, and we share ideas regularly. I've learned much from him in the kitchen. Having some discretionary time is a big plus -- I work from home as a freelance writer/editor, and I'm in public relations, so I try to find a bit of time during the day to check out AllRecipes.com for something new and exciting. The reviews on this website are a lifesaver sometimes, not to mention entertaining. I'm always trying new things, but I enjoy making hearty soups from scratch in the winter, along with homemade breads. We use the grill all summer long, so I try lots of new side dishes, especially for all the veggies growing in the garden. Meat, I think, is forever a challenge in terms of achieving the perfect, most tender and delicious outcome. Thus I am always experimenting with the main dish. Definitely the New England clam boil. Our family, born and raised in Massachusetts, also grew up on French Canadian recipes passed down from our ancestors in Quebec. They include tortiere (meat pie); meat and potato stuffing for the turkey; turnips and carrots cooked and mashed together, to name a few. Our home town, Fall River, has a strong Portuguese influence, and so many of our favorites (Emeril attests to this, since he's from the same city) include Portuguese chourice made into lots of interesting dishes. Today, my brother Dan and I live 2,000 miles apart, yet we talk on the phone almost daily about recipes, down to the smallest detail, and many of them hail from this website. The two of us especially keep our family's cooking traditions alive and have passed those to our children. Roasts, sauces, gravies, delicious broths for soup, breads, desserts. "Almost" everything I make is from scratch -- that's the ultimate cooking experience for me. Experimenting with different wines to flavor food is great fun, and what I now use most is dry sherry -- I saute with it regularly. I've been cooking for many years, so I've had many tragedies. I wouldn't change it for the world, because that's how we learn. That said, nothing frustrates me more than making pie crust. I'm getting better at it, but I've tearfully thrown away more dough. Ugh. Help !