I learned how to cook from my Mom and she's a fantastic cook! I always used to hang out in the kitchen with her when I was a very young child, as I got older she let me do little things for her when preparing dinners. So by a relatively early age I knew how to cook even more advanced dishes. Now my Mom and I are a great team! I hear a lot of good things about my cooking but it means most when compliments come from Mom. She's my cooking icon and I owe everything I know to her. I make pretty much everything from scratch (except maybe the pastry dough - well, did that once, and came to the conclusion that it's for people with too much time) and I really appreciate if others do it too because it makes a huge difference in the taste of food. I must admit that I improvise a lot and seldom end up following the recipe word for word. Cooking is a creative activity and good cooks always have lots of friends. :-) Pasta of any kind, veal cutlet, Italian antipasti, salmon in vermouth-cream sauce... I love to go home for Christmas and participate in the week-long cooking and preparation marathon. Ragout fin with pastry-shells is an absolute must for Christmas eve just like roasted goose and mousse au chocolat for desert. Sauce Bernaise, Chicken in taragon-sauce, creme au caramel I'm not very good at baking...