Hey, what’s up? Hello!

While I’m a full time math teacher by trade – there’s nothing that brings me joy more than cooking + sharing good food with the people I love. I was born and raised in CT and some of the earliest memories I have took place in the kitchen. Wether it be cooking together or enjoying a meal as a family – food has always been a part of some of my fondest memories growing up. There’s something magical about preparing a meal from scratch and sharing it with people you love. I’m fortunate enough to say that I grew up eating home cooked meals every night from both my mom and my Nonna. Those two women have inspired me to be not only the cook, but the woman I am today.

Every December, my mom and I (and now sister-in-law!), spend an entire weekend, sometimes more, baking Christmas cookies for all our friends and family. Now, that might sound like no big deal but when I say we bake for everyone, I’m truly not kidding. I’m talking 18+ different kinds of cookies, easily totaling over thousands of cookies, in ONE WEEKEND. None of us are bakers by trade – we just love sharing a little piece of joy with the people we love during the holidays. Every year, as “cookie weekend” approaches we get excited to begin. And every year, as cookie weekend ends, we vow to never make that many cookies again. Yet we do, EVERY year. I think it’s memories like these that make me feel most at home in the kitchen. Have we had epic fails – YUP. But that’s part of the fun. We laugh, we cry, we argue – all over stupid cookies. I’ll never forget my sister-in-law’s fist cookie weekend – she had no idea what she was getting herself into HAH. Was she an avid baker before this weekend – definitely not, but she went into it with a positive attitude and absolutely killed it!

I think once you get past the fear of screwing up, anyone can become a great cook. Like anything, it takes practice. So, don’t be afraid to try something new, even if it’s an epic fail, it can teach you what not to do next time! I truly believe that mistakes are so important when learning how to do anything – especially cooking. As long as you go into it with an open mind, a good recipe, and a phone number for a pizza place in case things get REAL ugly, you’d be surprised just how great of a cook you can be! If you’re reading this then that means you are interested in learning more and I’m so excited for you. My biggest goal through this blog is to get everyday people to enjoy cooking and sharing food with loved ones – it’s the best!

Now, what can you expect from me? Comfort food, done easy. Everyone has that one meal that they claim as their favorite. Now, take the comfort you felt when you ate it and imagine sharing it with other people cause YOU made it. It’s an incredible feeling and I can’t wait for you to experience that with some of these recipes. Even if you don’t consider yourself a cook or claim your bad at cooking – give one of these recipes a shot – I promise, even you can make a meal that brings someone comfort.