About the Author

Savoring a tomato and porchetta panini in Assisi, Italy (Dec 2007).

I’m Andrea Stutzman and I want to share with you my experiences as I delve deeper into the world of food, drink and–never mind the cliché–the good life.

Cooking is a family passion. It’s not unusual for my mom and me to be working side-by-side in the kitchen chopping mushrooms or stirring polenta while my dad is carefully grilling slices of onions and flank steak. As soon as we hear that any of my siblings are coming in town, my mom and I start dreaming of what we’re going to cook while they are here (It’s only September now, but I’m determined to make tamales this Christmas!). My mom, sisters, sister-in-law and aunts have several of the same cookbooks so we’re always comparing notes: have you tried the grilled chicken and pepper salad on page 37? The Moroccan stew was disappointing, but it tasted better the next day.

We’re also big do-it-yourselfers in my family. You won’t find a Pillsbury Funfetti cake mix in the cupboard or Tollhouse cookie dough in the fridge. Why buy a mix when you can make it better from scratch? And so I learned to whip up a batch of brownies or oatmeal cookies in as little time as using a mix. Brownies gave way to Scottish Shortbread, Almond Thins, pumpkin pie and cinnamon rolls. My cooking experiences were grounded in sweets, but somewhere along the way I fell in love with asparagus, sweet potatoes and figs. And then lentils, blue cheese and Brussels sprouts became favorites. The question became how would one combine these flavors together? and finally what wine would one serve with this?

Trying new things is what drives my passion for food. Whether it be ordering chipotle-rubbed quail with papaya lime chutney in a restaurant or tackling the éclairs from the latest issue of Fine Cooking, I love to try new things. Chances are that if you’re with me, I’ll make you try new things too-thanks Erica for bearing with the vegetable dish that looked like a brain, Stacey the raw cacao nibs and how about that quinoa, girls?

Enjoy the blog and may it propel you further forward in your own food adventures.