I'm a 25-year-old editor in Marin County, CA with a boyfriend who can't smell and an old-fashioned Italian urge to use garlic in every dish. I love baking-- turning dough or batter into cakes, cookies, and breads is just awesome. I'm a bit of an asianaphile, so I make a lot of food from or inspired by Japan, China, Thailand, etc. My mother makes a hamburger stroganoff recipe that is to DIE for and I've never quite duplicated! I'm also very used to meals with side-dishes; one-dish deals usually aren't my thing. I invented my first successful recipe in January of 2010-- a Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe. I've never had a huge cooking disaster-- I'm usually overcautious --but one time when I was little I tried to make tea in the microwave and set the handle of my dad's favorite tea kettle on fire.