My initial forays into cooking began in college - first to avoid cafeteria food, and later to creatively stretch leftovers on a budget. I grew up in the midwest, my husband is from Cuba, and we have lived all over the country, learning cuisine as we go. I enjoy baking desserts. I also love to experiment with ethnic cuisines. In the past few years I have become proficient in Cuban cuisine, as well as learned the basics of Thai and Indian. I love spicy foods! And I love to make stews. There's nothing better on a chilly day than a hearty bowl of rich stew. My favorite family tradition, which began with my husband and me while we were dating, is to cook dinner together each night. Our cooking styles complement each other, and it is a great way to unwind and connect after a busy day. At our last military assignment my husband worked for the military command center running the Iraq war. The poor guys that worked for him toiled long thankless hours at their jobs with few breaks. So every week I would find a new cookie or bar recipe on allrecipes.com and bake several batches for the guys. Perhaps it was the warm fuzzy feeling I got for doing it, but I never had a batch of cookies turn out badly that year. It was very gratifying to share a love of cooking with men and women who truly appreciated the gesture. Can't say I've had any terrible failures cooking. The toughest part about moving from east coast to west is learning to cook with natural gas instead of electric. Whole different ball game!