My parents, who both worked full-time jobs in addition to managing our farm, began teaching me to cook when I was just seven years old out of sheer necessity.  My grilled cheese sandwiches won me a blue ribbon in 4H (a farmer’s group for kids) the next summer!  

I graduated to more complex meals and learned to bake from my Great Grandma Anna, whose pie-making skills helped her family survive during the Great Depression.  Throughout her life, she sold baked goods from her kitchen, often making hundreds of pies (and profit) for holidays.

When it came time for college, after a false start as a pilot, I switched my major to Food Science.  I loved learning the “why” behind a recipe and how to make something good taste even better.  Although I worked in the food industry for six years, it wasn’t my calling, but I still love to bake.  Today, my family begs for coconut cake, lemon cupcakes with buttercream frosting, and especially, Great Grandma Anna’s apple pie.