I'm a teenage cook who grew up helping in the kitchen...and eventually took over. Now I'm often the one cooking for my family! I'm slightly haphazard in the kitchen--I'm not one for complicated recipes or exact measurements, but I'm always willing to try something new. Sometimes, a last minute addition can make the difference between average and inspired! I am a huge lover of spicy foods, especially Indian, Asian, and Middle-Eastern flavors. I also developed an affinity for Greek cuisine after a summer trip to Athens. When I'm cooking, I like to experiment and mix different flavors. I often use recipes for inspiration, rather than following step-by-step instructions, and sometimes I just make things up. But I always taste everything while I'm in the kitchen, to make sure the food tastes good, but also because I'm just always hungry. My mom got me started in the kitchen at a very young age. She did a lot of baking when my sister and I were small, and we would always drag the dining room chairs into the kitchen to stand on so we could reach the counter. With the two chairs side by side, there was barely enough space to walk! My mom taught me much of what I know about cooking, but more importantly, she ignited my passion for food. Now, when she has a question about an ingredient or technique, she usually asks me! Whenever I "just wing it" and end up with something really delicious, that's always exciting. I'll always say, "We should make this again," but the next time it will come out slightly different. Although I love to bake, I'm not the most attentive of chefs when it comes to following specific instructions, which often gets me into trouble in the baked goods department. I once attempted to make cinnamon rolls from scratch for mother's day, and everything went rather well until I tried to serve them, and realized that they were entirely raw in the middle. We ended up taking the rolls out of the pan and rebaking them individually. In the end, they were not as gooey as I would have liked, but they developed a caramelized crust on the outside that was quite delicious. So it wasn't really a tragedy after all. :)