I am almost finished graduate school and close to becoming a real adult! Although many things will be new to me, in this new adult experience, cooking will not be one of those things! I have been cooking for as long as I remember. I am particularly interested in baking, having always loved making desserts. I have even spent one whole summer, after high school, with the goal of just baking cookies (allrecipes.com was a main reference then!). I love baking all sorts of different things. My interests have also expanded to cooking other foods, basically out of need (can't just eat dessert!). My interests usually come in phases. At the moment, I am really into scones - great for breakfast and for snacking on at work. My mom has always cooked a great deal and a great variety of things as well. One tradition I hold particularly dear is Christmas. For the past several years, we have been receiving the family at our house and my mom takes care of dinner and appetizers while I take on dessert. I have made many desserts over the years - English Trifle, Paris Breast, Profiteroles, Pistachio Crème Brulée... I couldn't imagine Christmas otherwise! It was less than a year ago that my boyfriend and I baked our first whole chicken with stuffing! My most major tragedy (there are always many minor ones) was when I baked my brother's birthday cake - a white cake with caramel icing (from this site, I believe). I overcooked the cake but I had not noticed (I didn't taste it - it's cake!!) and served it to my brother and his friends. I served them first and then took my piece. When I took my first bite I noticed the burnt taste - sort of an aftertaste. I told them they didn't have to eat the cake, have some of the icing, since it's good! Let's just say I heard about it several year afterwards.