I've been cooking since I was a kid, picking up tips, tricks and general know-how from observing my mom and grandma. I'm a sucker for Southern cooking (biscuits and gravy!!) and Mexican food. I strive to maintain a healthy diet-- not easy with a boyfriend that doesn't like most veggies and looks at every meal and goes "What's in it?"--so I'm always looking for sneaky ways to up the nutritional value of meals, like shredding veggies into pasta sauce and using turkey instead of other meats. I also try to use natural, organic ingredients if and when possible. Surprises...breakfast in bed, baked goods and other pleasure foods. I work full time and go to school so I like things that are fairly fast/healthy/cheap...even better if it hits all three marks! My grandma's cinnamon rolls, biscuits, and I'm trying to tackle her stringy-meat burritos. I've made the Thanksgiving dinner--turkey and all--since I was 15. Never had any negative reviews! Just one, my first attempt at making a roux for homemade mac & cheese...no amount of stirring or cheese adding could help that :(