Recipe of Me, Meme #1

What is your first memory of baking/cooking on your own?

Well, I thought I would never cook, after my dad told me the Thanksgiving turkey was eating my mom, as she was stuffing it---but as I grew older, both my mom and dad worked, so I shopped and prepared the meals.

Who had the most influence on your cooking?

My mom and my grandma had the most influence on me. I think my mom was trying to get me ready to cook when she handed me the garlic press, but instead, I held it in my hand and pretended it was a microphone, and sang Abba's "Dancing Queen." It's a small wonder how I ever made it into the kitchen.

I remember my grandma's "Ten Pound Cake," which was a purely chocolate with a cocoa, butter, and powdered sugar icing. It got it's name from the ten pounds we gained after eating it. That cake was amazing, and even more so after it was frozen!

Do you have any old photos as evidence of an early exposure to the culinary world and would you like to share it?

All I remember was getting to lick the pudding pots, and yes, I do have a picture of that.

What would be your most valued or used kitchen gadgets and/or what was the biggest letdown?

Most valued: my Kitchen Aid  Professional Mixer, my Air Bake Cookie Trays, and my cookie cutter collection (which is well over 200 cutters). Biggest letdown: my Osterizer Blender.

Name some funny or weird food combinations/dishes you really like---and probably no one else!

Scrambled eggs and cottage cheese, zucchini pancakes with cottage cheese and seasoned with salt and pepper.

What are the three eatables or dishes you simply don't want to live without?

Macaroni and cheese. Anything Italian---especially dishes made with ricotta cheese and pizza. Mashed potatoes with gravy. Oh, I love bread, too---hot, homemade bread fresh from the oven. Can we make it four eatables or dishes? And Creme Puffs. Can I add those, too?

Any questions you missed that you would have loved to answer?

Yes: Is there any one incident that made a believer out of you that you're pretty good in the kitchen?

Let's see...when I moved into my first apartment, I had a Tree-Trimming Party, where each of my guests brought an ornament for my tree. In return, I cooked a huge banquet of food for 20+ people. There was only candlelight allowed, which made everything sparkle and really set the tone for the evening. Only my finest dishes and crystal stemware were used. It really was beautiful, and I got raves about both my cooking and my cookies for weeks.

(My unending gratitude goes to my friend, Cole Smietana, who not only brought Christmas music and helped me set up, but who jumped right in and cleaned my kitchen afterward, insisting that I sit and talk with my guests. That kindness will NEVER be forgotten.)

Your own signature dish?
Cookies, first off.

Then I make this pasta dish with olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta cheese. Sometimes I throw in some chopped black olives, and/or add Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.

 I'm also known for my meatloaf, which is made with bread crumbs and oatmeal, with a ketchup-Karo-and brown sugar glaze.

Skillet Pizza would be another. It's fried in a pan like a Boboli, toppings go on next, followed by a thick layer of mozzarella cheese.

My sister loves my homemade Pizza Margarita.

I make a to-die-for hot macaroni salad, which includes elbow macaroni, cream cheese, olives, and I think there are small pieces of pepperoni in it, and some added seasonings.

 My parents love all my loaf bread (quick bread/sweet bread) recipes.

Any signs that this passion is going slightly over the edge and may need intervention?
Well, I collect recipes of all kinds. Just of cookies, I have 10 binders of recipes from the Internet. Regular recipes, 10 more binders. Add to that two 5-shelf bookshelves of cookbooks. I'd say I have a cooking/baking fetish, wouldn't you?

Who would you want to come to your kitchen and cook for you?
Paula Deen. I love that woman! She cooks like I like to eat---everything fattening and delicious. And that southern charm...gotta love her. Can you imagine having her for a neighbor? I want to take a little vacation to Georgia to take a cooking class from her. That would be awesome!

Your favorite cookie?
Snowball Cookies, otherwise known as Secret Kiss Cookies. They go great with hot chocolate. I make a really good hot chocolate with sweetened condensed milk and real chocolate, not powdered cocoa. It's wonderful. Add some homemade whipped cream or homemade marshmallows and it's amazing.

What are the perks of your job?
Making people happy and being able to express my creativity.

Hazards of the job?
Standing all day. But, hey, I get to do my butt squeezes, so I have a personal workout routine. If I take my apron off and throw it, I even have a little strip tease workout going on. Carmen Electra, you have nothing on me. You have your "Aerobic Strip Tease," but I have my "Sweatin' with the Cookies" workout.

Favorite restaurants?
Rachel's Roadhouse in Mercer, PA
North County Brewing in Slippery Rock, PA
Natili's North in downtown Butler PA
China Gourmet, Butler, PA
Olive Garden (Any location will do. I like the one in Cranberry, PA and the one in Maryland I went to. Can't remember which county I was in, though. I had several teaching interviews all over Maryland and can't recall where it was at the moment. I will have to get back to you on this.)
The Forum Grill, located inside The Vernon Manor Hotel in Cincinnati, OH (This hotel has now been converted into a medical office building.).

Favorite perfume?
Avon's Far Away.

Favorite shoes?
Via Spiga: Rialto 4" black suede stilettos

Favorite Magazines?
Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, Taste of Home, Cottage Style

What are three things you say the most?
"Was that out loud...or did you just crawl inside my head and hear that?"
"You have issues bigger than I could ever hope to have."
"It's all good."

Hobbies?
Writing, reading, gardening, crafts, cooking, baking, playing piano.

Collections?
Snow globes, Old World Christmas/Christopher Radko/Kurt Adler hand-blown glass ornaments, cookie cutters.

Favorite Songs?
Evanescence: You, Anywhere, Eternal, Missing
Edwin McCain: I'll Be, I Could Not Ask For More, See Off This Mountain
Lifehouse: Everything
Josh Groban: Remember When it Rained
Keith Urban: Raining on Sunday
Neil Diamond: Hello Again
Celine Dion: My Heart Will Go On

What is your favorite childhood toy?
Weebles and my Fisher Price boat. I played with these for hours in the bathtub. I think that was the beginning of my water fetish.

Do you keep a diary?
Yes. Several online.

When you sleep, what do you wear?
The cookies I ate that day, deep inside my tummy.

What is your secret passion?
Dancing, especially belly dancing. Just ask the girls in the office. Buy my new video for $19.95. Sometimes I just break out and "bust a move" in the middle of my apartment. Um...yeah. Anyway...

What would your dream vacation be?
Colorado would be wonderful---the mountains and lakes. New Hampshire for the same reason (especially in autumn), Cannon Beach, Oregon, for it's cool and breezy secluded walking beaches. Anywhere with mountains and/or water.

What are your favorite comfort foods?
Warm homemade soups, hot bread---especially garlic bread, crackers and cheese spreads/logs, baked macaroni and cheese, tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich, ice cream, and pizza.

What are your favorite simple pleasures?
Making others laugh, a sunset in autumn---especially over a lake, drinking hot chocolate by candle light---in a warm bath on a cold winter's night (the poet in me is surfacing again), the smell after a rainstorm, warm cinnamon buns with lots of icing, listening to the birds sing and watching them feed, and falling asleep to the sound of the rain.

What have you always wanted to learn how to do?
Ski, knit, paint, and make several different types of breads and rolls.