ABOUT THIS COOK:

I am obsessed with recipes, cookbooks, chefs, restaurants, cooking on television, cooking magazines, cooking and eating. It's not unusual for me to check out 20-40 cookbooks from the library on a specific topic(ice cream, tapas, tea parties, etc), browse them all and buy the ones I love. I buy loads of cookbooks and like reading them cover-to-cover There's a stack at home that I haven't touched, so maybe that needs to calm down. Love reading books by people in the food business, too. Top Chef is my favorite show on TV.

• What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?
  Alligator...nothing crazy.

• What do you cook when home alone?
  Cereal or leftovers. Or take-out. I tend not to cook when I'm alone(obviously!)

• Your most treasured kitchen possession:
  KitchenAid Mixer

• The ideal number of guests for a dinner party is:
  6 or 8