The Bells Are Ringing: A Call To Table

I am so very proud of my mom!  She is my teacher, my mentor and my hero!  The success of this cookbook is a testament to her strength, perseverance and of course her incredible talents in the kitchen.   

http://www.ocregister.com/news/cookies-283009-baking-horsch.html

Cooking is a language

Aunt Cathy, Aunt Carol & Mommy July 4th, 2010 - They are all fluent in "cooking"

I come from a long line of devoted foodies and great cooks.  My Mom is a great cook. She has 9 siblings and they are all great cooks, my grandparents were great cooks, my parent's friends are great cooks.  So, at age 21, I naturally assumed that even though I hadn't spent much solo time in the kitchen, I must be a great cook too!  After moving out of my parents house, that notion was short lived.  
My first true dinner party as a young newlywed was a total disaster!  It was fraught with a collapsing barbeque, a tri tip turned soccer ball, decimated potatoes and it ended with my gracious guests going home hungry.

I have come a long way since then.  In fact several years ago my cooking epiphany came when I was looking at a recipe for some dish or other and I knew that if I changed an ingredient here and a seasoning there and added a particular flavor or texture, that it would be a spectacular dish.  From that day on, I didn't need recipes to cook tasty dishes.  It was as if cooking was a language and I could finally speak it! 

In this blog I would like to share recipes, ingredients, ideas, stories and thoughts with my family and friends and perhaps make some new friends along the way.

Mother's Day 2011 at Pascal's