I Always Like To Have

My Mother Would Never Let Me In The Kitchen. I Always Wanted To Cook, But I Was Never Allowed To. Her View Of The World Was, "cooking Is My Job, And Studying Is Your Job." I Think, In Retrospect, She Didn't Like The Chaos. She Was Very Orderly. It Had To Be Her Way.

When I First Started Writing Cookbooks, I Remember Thinking To Myself, What Makes Me Think I Can Write A Cookbook? There Are These Great Chefs Who Are Really Trained. And, As I Started, I Realized, Actually, What Is My Lack Is Actually Exactly Right, Because I Can Connect With - Cooking's Hard For Me. I Never Worked On... And That's Why My Recipes Are Really Simple, Because I Want To Be Able To Do Them.

If It's A Cocktail Party, I Generally Make Five Or Six Different Things, And I Try To Choose Recipes That Feel Like A Meal: A Chicken Thing, A Fish Or Shrimp Thing, Maybe Two Vegetable Things, And I Think It's Fun To End The Cocktail Party With A Sweet Thing.

If You Think About A Thanksgiving Dinner, It's Really Like Making A Large Chicken.

They Say That Gardens Look Better When They Are Created By Loving Gardeners Rather Than By Landscapers, Because The Garden Is More Tended To And Cared For. The Same Thing Goes For Cooking. I Only Cook For People I Love.