I am a 5th grade school teacher, and mommy of a beautiful 2 year old little girl. I am super busy during the school year and don't always get to spend as much time in the kitchen as I would like, but during the summer you can't get me out of it! I am an avid collector of cookbooks, and love to devour myself in each one, filling my head with ideas and intrigue! Reading cookbooks gives me such a tranquil sense of calmness in times of need! My mother and father are also connoisseurs of the kitchen which I am sure is where I get this crazy love of food and cooking from. My mother is a blonde haired green eyed German/English gal, hailing from the great state of Texas, whereas, my father, is Hispanic hailing from Monterrey, Mexico. Needless to say,Tex/Mex food has become a staple in our house over the years. Nontheless, with such a colorful heritage, different foods from the flavors of Italian, Spanish, French, American, and German Cuisines have graced our pots and pans with nothing but heart and soul. During the Christmas holiday, tamales are a must. Believe it or not, my mom makes the best tamalas in the world! That's right, that Texas gal has it down! I tried for years to render the perfect Beef Wellington. I don't know what it was, but I could never get the meat the right temp or the pastry to brown just right. It was so frustrating because the preperation wasn't complicated. One night I had a bottle of wine, good music, and a house to myself in which I decided to give it one more try. Don't know if it was the wine or the music, or maybe the solidarity of being alone, no interruptions, but my Beef Wellington came out perfect! It's been my signature dish ever since. My weakest link is baking. I'm getting better, but I haven't mastered the profession of exact measuring. When I cook, I never follow a recipe. My motto is to "throw a little bit of this and a little bit of that into to the dish until it tastes right." Therefore, precise measurements tend to be a little bit challenging!