By Eight, Cooking Had Captured My Interests and Taste Buds

I even made my mother fib about my age to get me into a cooking class for nine-year-olds at the YMCA. (I was months shy of that age.) From Pooh I graduated to The Betty Crocker Cookbook and its amazing cake recipes. I’m still a big fan of baking cakes and often do it to relax on the weekend.

The Joy of Cooking and Mastering the Art of French Cooking came next. My high school friends were my test subjects, and I owe them a debt of gratitude for their willingness to try things like escargots and îles flottantes (floating islands) to perfect my techniques.