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When I was growing up, spaghetti, meatloaf and stew with dumplings (the fluffy, Bisquick or Jiffy Mix kind, not the leaden, chewy, eggy sort) were my favorites. My Mom isn't much of a cook, though, so when I got a hankering for those dishes once I was out on my own, I had to do some serious revisions to make them taste as good as I remembered them. Oh yes--and sloppy joes!

My very first cookbook was one I bought from the Scholastic Book Club, probably when I was in third or fourth grade. Sadly, I no longer have it, and I can't even remember the name--I think it was something along the lines of "Stone Soup"--but I do recall making a really terrific snickerdoodle recipe out of it.

Sigh--I wish I could say my first experience with Indian food was as positive or life-changing as some of the others above. Mine was at a lunch buffet in the Midwest, and all I can remember of it is that it didn't seem remotely like what I imagined Indian cuisine to be like--it was bland (probably tamed for Midwestern palates :( ). I recently picked up Julie Sahni's "Classic Indian Cooking", though, so maybe one of these days, when I finally work up the courage to tackle a recipe from it, I'll have my own Indian food epiphany. :)

Actually, I'd love to learn how to cook Indian food--all types of Indian food, not just the dozen or so dishes that seem to be all one can find in the grocery store freezer case (at least here in the Midwest). I'd *really* like to learn how to make Indian street food. :)

Spaghetti squash with really good butter and just a touch of parmesan, sprinkled with chopped herbs (I had it as an amuse bouche recently, and I'm trying to recreate it tonight at home).

I've had a number of pretty fantastic chocolate desserts, including an amazing Mexican chocolate pudding made from deeply dark chocolate, so that it was barely sweet at all, and dolloped with what I can only assume must have been crema, because it added a surprisingly lovely tanginess. But I was sad to hear that Robert Steinberg has passed away--Scharffen Berger's milk chocolate is still one of my all-time favorites; it was the first artisan chocolate I ever tried, and really opened my eyes to what chocolate could be.

Jeez, there's so many--I love to make soups, stews, roasts, etc., so winter is when I really get into cooking. A recent favorite, though, is brisket pot roast with butternut squash and sweet potatoes (and a bit of sherry, which really pushes it over the top).

Last September, my husband and I made a spur-of-the-moment trip out to Saugatuck, MI (about 4 hrs away from where we live), primarily to go to Journeyman Cafe, on the basis of a terrific review by SE's Michael Nagrant. It was *totally* worth it--if only for their died-and-gone-to-heaven-good pork belly. There was a maple gastrique on the plate as well, so it was like having the most amazing breakfast ever, only for dinner.

I've recently fallen in love with flat-iron steak--I picked up a "Hunter's Game Blend" rub on vacation a couple of months ago, and while it's true that beef isn't game, the rub's AMAZING with the deeply beefy flavor of the flat-iron. Of course, I wouldn't turn up my nose at a couple of porterhouses either... :)

Mmm--pumpkin brioche bread pudding...

I've made a couple of the recipes on your lists (corniest corn muffins and all-in-one holiday cake), and I can certify them as seriously yummy, but for some reason, today my tastebuds are jonesing for brussels sprouts--particularly the gratin with cauliflower and pinenut-breadcrumb topping.

Mmm... this brings back some really happy memories of chubby little kid me at family reunions. Back then, the hands-down answer would have been that cherry "cheesecake" from a box (which is sweet enough to cause instant diabetes). Now, it'd be a toss-up between deviled eggs and my father-in-law's "dead woman's beans"--a really fantastic version of baked beans.