Fun is the most important. If you do stuff for money, it never works out.
You can be miserable before you have a cookie and you can be miserable after you eat a cookie but you can’t be miserable while you are eating a cookie.
Food is not about impressing people. It’s about making them feel comfortable.
Every once in a while, a cookbook comes along that simply knocks me out.
Instead of going out to dinner, buy good food. Cooking at home shows such affection. In a bad economy, it’s more important to make yourself feel good.
I try to greet my friends with a drink in my hand, a warm smile on my face, and great music in the background, because that’s what gets a dinner party off to a fun start.
If you think about a Thanksgiving dinner, it’s really like making a large chicken.
Grilled cheese and tomato soup is the ultimate comfort meal.
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.
Never let ’em see you sweat. Guests feel guilty if they think you’ve worked too hard to make dinner for them – which of course you have!
Creme Brulee is the ultimate ‘guy’ dessert. Make it and he’ll follow you anywhere.
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.