I work for NASA by day as a video editor, and if it wasn't for my dream job, I'd be in cooking school--I love cooking! My husband laughs because I pour over cookbooks in my free time like most women do magazines or romance novels. I love learning new things and testing them out. My parents are both Jedi cooks and have taught their young Pedawon well. I love sauces! Sometimes that's the only difference between one chicken dish and another and it's a world of difference! Bernaise, Beurre Blanc, Béchamel, Allemande, Mornay--even pestos and salsas--you name it, I love to make it (and eat it!). Pretty much everyone in my family cooks--even my dad, in fact, he's awesome! My Norweigan heritage also brings some interesting desserts and other dishes to my recipe box that are somewhat unusual. I love cooking and always have! I guess it depends who you ask. I recently cooked a 6-course wine pairing dinner for my good friend's birthday--it was a hit! Brie pastry, rustic bread salad, scallops in a beurre blanc, drunken risotto, ratatouille, grilled leg of lamb, even cheesecake paired with chardonnay, pinot noir, zinfandel, orange muscat and more! It made for some great memories! But ask my husband and his favoirite meal is cheesy tuna casserole! Tuna casser...sheesh! Recently, I lost a dear friend--my sourdough starter. I didn't mean to, I swear. But a busy schedule and a rash of leftovers forced my good friend back into the deep dark reaches of my fridge, where it was tragically neglected and consequently passed on to that great Bakery in the Sky. It was almost 3 years old and made some of the finest sourdough bread around. I had never tasted anything like it. I had only recently mastered the art of the soft-not-solid round sourdough loaf. It was a beautiful thing. And now, it's gone. I can barely stand to even make another one, knowing it will not hold to the flavorful and fluffy standards I'd grown accustomed, nay complaicent, to. I know...how shameful.