I've been cooking for about 14 years now. I'm an IT geek by trade, but cooking is my passion in life and I dream of the day when I can feed people for a living. I have to admit, I wouldn't be the cook I am today without tools like All Recipes and all the great cooks from everywhere who provide their reviews and priceless advice about how to make a good recipe GREAT! Oh, my! There are too many to name. I tend toward really deeply flavorful dishes. The more layers of flavor, the better. Indian, Mexican and Italian are probably my faves to cook, but especially to EAT! Since I was a small child, my family has had a yearly tradition of making Christmas candy and cookies. These wonderful treats are given to friends and family for a hand-made Christmas gift. The love shines through with every bite! I have recently begun catering two nights a week and the group that I cater to has raved about every dish I've fed them. I have to tip my hat to the recipe submitters on All Recipes for providing me with the tried and true dishes that these guys love so much. I don't believe there is anything more soul-completing for a cook than to have a room fall silent at meal time, with an occasional groan of pleasure heard as they eat a dish you've created. When my husband and I first got together, I wanted to make us a real, home cooked, comfort food meal, and attempted to fry chicken. The temperature was set way too high on the pan of oil, and, of course, when I put the chicken in, it began to smoke. The smoke alarm went off, and I'm surprised the local fire department didn't show up! Needless to say, this was a disaster! I didn't attempt to cook again for almost 2 years! I'm so gald I found the determination to start again, and I haven't looked back since!