I like to cook because I REALLY like to eat. As a result, I REALLY have to work out a lot. We have a lot of huge family gatherings, to which everyone brings a dish, so I'd have to say my entire family influenced my love of food and cooking. I like to cook just about everything but if I had to pick the thing I cook the most, I'd have to say rice. My brothers call me The Rice Queen. That would be followed closely by cookies. There are a lot of kids running in and out of here and cookies keep 'em happy. I love cooking breakfast on Christmas morning. It's something I've been doing since I had my son and it always draws in various family members. The Mother's Day and Thanksgiving dinners at my Mom's house are my faves though. Everyone cooks and everyone enjoys it. Catering my youngest brother's wedding and having everything turn out perfectly. Whew! The first time I made lasagna was a soupy, sloppy mess. To this day I have no idea what exactly I did wrong (my lasagna ROCKS now!) but it was absolutely horrible. I sent it to my brother in an ice cream bucket (he'll eat anything).