My first grandson was born in November of 2011. His mother stole my heart many years ago, but this little guy owns it! So if I am not able to be with him, I would rather be fishing or cooking. I love new recipes, but love to make them my own.I hesitated to rate my cooking level as expert, but answered the questions truthfully and that rated me. I believe a good cook is always learning! Married for nearly 40 years I began cooking at my mother's elbow when I was a young girl, and was the primary cook for most weeknight meals from the time I was 12 or 13 while my mother worked. On the weekends she would take over, with me as her sous chef. Combining her knowledge with that of my Grandma Hazel Hauser,and then the Kitchen Heavy Hitters - my Godmother Del and great Aunt Gen are hands down the best of the best. I may be an Irish mongrel, but these Polish ladies are my muses whenever I walk into the kitchen or peruse a new recipe. I love to just cook for my family and present meals cooked with style and basic down home goodness! Throw in a few fancy classics and that is my repertoire. Summer and its abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables keeps me busy with jams and preserves. Freezing has become my mainstay rather than canning. Along with millions of other cooks I am always looking for creative zucchini recipes, and ideas for summer and winter grilling (what's a little snow to a Buffalo gal) I adore casseroles! Comfort foods like pot pies, mac and cheese, hearty homemade soups - one pot meals are a delight and don't have to be boring. I enjoy baking equally with cooking and the smell of breads or cakes permeate our home, and I swear the calories just seep in through my skin. Let me say now Butter. That's right, Butter. Let me say it again, BUTTER!! things just taste better made with butter spread with butter or dipped in butter. That other stuff is oil, yuck. I use olive oil liberally, but come on folks Learning at the side of the best, and trying to pass on these special memories to my own daughter. Some of my favorite memories are of summers with my Godmother picking strawberries, and then days and days of making preserves and the ultimate shortcakes. Lessons on proper Pierogies in Aunt Gen Ayer's kitchen...omg these are so good. Continuing the tradition of gr. gr. grandmother's "Cracker Stuffing" for every turkey, chicken or crown roast. Learning with trial and error and tasting, tasting and more tasting that is the only way to cook. The best stuffing in the world, superb soups and the best chili in western new york-not for a texas chili lover, this recipe of mine has won fans from all over. Ok, now this is really disgusting - My first experience with a canned ham (oh yuck what was I thinking) when I went to slice it, I found that I had left the paper on(who knew there was paper under all that slimey gel!!) The worst nightmare was when I was 10 and I had drained off the "water" from the giblets and neck my mother was simmering away for 4 hours to "help" not knowing that this was the stock for the gravy for the thanksgiving turkey!