ABOUT THIS COOK:

Professionally eclectic, I make money doing a lot of things (including The Best Job Ever, my office gig at UC Berkeley), and do a lot of things for no money at all. I am about to launch the project that has consumed the last few years of my emotional life, The Mom Food Project, http://www.momfoodproject.com I live in Oakland, California, with my partners, my niece (who came to live with us when she was 16), and the best circle of friends and chosen family a person could hope for.

• What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?
  Probably horse, but it didn't seem strange at the time.

• What do you cook when home alone?
  Soup, usually. Or pasta.

• Your most treasured kitchen possession:
  I don't really treasure possessions. I can get by with a good knife and a decent pot.

• The ideal number of guests for a dinner party is:
  Six to eight