Wooden Spoons

Because I love food, my love for cooking comes naturally. I remember reading every page of every cookbook that my mother owned, lingering longer at the pages with tantalizing pictures of a lemongrass stir-fry, caramel coffee cake or poached halibut. Creating my own kooky concoctions either made for a fun snack or an "interesting" non-repeat.

A simple joy for me is to cook dinner from scratch for friends or family. Stirring a savory cream sauce with wooden spoons (one for stirring, one for tasting) gives me time to appreciate and really listen to the conversation in the other room. Please don't hear any Ina-Garten-snobbery in my preference for from-scratch. I can appreciate cut-up hot dogs in macaroni and cheese like any other. It's just that I find a meal to be one of the best ways to show love.