About me
A highly skilled home cook and domestic goddess, I love watching Lidia Bastianich, Nigella Lawson, Gordon Ramsay (I know!), America's Test Kitchen, and The Chew.
I make a mean peach chutney from my peach tree, create recipes using Fuyu persimmons from a friend's tree, and love experimenting with flavors, textures, and seasonal ingredients.
I am a foodie, and, of course, I have more cookbooks than I really need. I'm compiling my own cookbook with all of my go-to standards, family favorites, and original recipes to pass along to my family.
Cooking Influences
Dining experiences and world cuisine are major influences in my cooking endeavors. I love spicy food, but I can also appreciate the simplicity and comfort of down-home casseroles and soups. My mother was intrepid in the kitchen; although not every dish was a success, she was always willing to try something new, and she taught me a lot about economizing and trying substitutes for ingredients. My aunt, who always made large batches of food and either froze or "put it up" for later use, inspired me to modify recipes for home canning; this is how I began "manufacturing" my peach products in small-batch production at home.
My maternal family is of French-Canadian descent, and as much as I love French cuisine, some dishes can be overwhelmingly fussy and not always the best choice for a large crowd (i.e., potlucks), yet the food of Provence is comforting and straightforward (after all, how easy is ratatouille?). My adopted family hails from the East and South, so there's a lot of soul food at their family gatherings. And my bio-paternal family has roots in the Pacific Northwest, New Mexico, and Spain.
World cuisines that I love include Moroccan, Indian, Italian, Greek, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Mexican & Yucatan, Caribbean, Polynesian, Thai. And to me, American food is more than tuna casserole or Cheese Wiz--it includes Southern, soul food, Southwestern, Tex-Mex, Cajun, Italian-American, seafood boils....
Famous TV chef influences include America's Test Kitchen team (Bridget and Julia), Lidia Bastianich, Julia Child, Nigella Lawson, Jacques Pepin, Steven Raichlen, Gordon Ramsay, Too Hot Tamales (Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken). My personal influences include friends Jean-Pierre (Olympia, WA) and Thierry (Los Angeles/Orange counties), the many gastro-pub chefs and cooks who are all worthy of fame but don't seek it, and, of course, family and friends who generously share recipes, ideas, "what ifs," and their own home-grown fruits & veggies.
United States Chef
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