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It really depends. Some cookbook authors I have so much respect for that I follow their recommendations to the letter. For others, I look at what all my authors have to say on the matter.

I don't like it when I'm sitting at the dinner table saying "I hope I can remember how I made this so delicious." I combine recipes when I cook meals and I let my limited experience guide me. I would love to learn how to combine herbs and spices though. When I bake I stick to the recipe.

what did you mean that France is going one way and America is going the other? Where is the world going in regards to food?

I learned to cook by trial and error and following loosely the indications of my granma (her techniques is good but her seasoning very poor) after a year I was able to master most of the basics dishes from Puerto Rico (where I was born and raised) now that I lived in Long Island and married an american I am trying to learned some Irish-American dishes i.e.shepards pies but it is hard to follow a recipe and at the end I end with the Puerto Rican version of a shepherds pie. The only cooking so far I don't puertoricanize is Italian ohh boy I love!! the creamy sauces, the cured meats and the fresh past I can found in this very Italian neighborhood in L.I. Ah and congratulations for the show I like it very much

I usually read about 4-8 recipes for same dish (say, chicken cacciatore) try and get the sens for the technique and chose the spice pallate i want. proportions make this difficult though

My family loves to eat flavorful meals from all different cuisines .... so, when I want to make something new, I look for three or four recipes for the same meal, look for the common ingredients and take it from there!

What is this recipe thing of which you speak?

A big reason I can wing it so confidently in the kitchen is your guest. Mr. Peterson's books are much more than collections of recipes. His teaching background shines through. If I could only keep one author in my cookbook collection, that author would be James Peterson.

I grew up surrounded by cooks and cooking - we always joked that while we were eating we were talking about food. I intuit recipes modifying them according to what I have on hand or what I feel like tasting. As with anything the more you cook the better you get and the more you can move away from strict adherence to recipes. I have been known to combine recipes and experiment over and over until I get the end result I am looking for.

Thanks!
Love the show!!

Not usually, I know from experience what to skip, or what the writer skipped.
I have been waiting forever for Mr Peterson to appear on your show. We have all of his cookbooks and we consult "Mr Peterson" all the time. Please ask him for me: how can I make candied spiced nuts for salads that are not all STICKY??? Please. I need help!

Usually I'll do a recipe the first time by the book. After that, I improvise.

Things I automatically boost on the second (sometime first) time: garlic, butter, salt, pepper, herbs and spices. My main focus is to make the food as robust as possible.

Remember, life is too short for mild salsa.

Experience. Coming from a family of cooks on all sides of the family, food is the focus of discussion. So you are always thinking about how to improve a dish or how to replicate one. You are always in a state of experimentation, but basic rules and flavor combinations apply. Science looms large in the kitchen. It helps to know some, esp. in baking.