One Big Reason I Do What I

I Started Cooking When I Was About 10. I Have Memories Like When I Was 6 Or 7 With My Mom, And When I Was 12 I Started Getting Real Serious About Cooking.

My Inspiration Was My Mom. She's A Great Cook, And She Still Cooks, And We Still Banter Back And Forth About Cooking. Growing Up In A Mostly Portuguese Community, Food Was Important And The Family Table Was Extremely Important. At A Very Young Age I Understood That.

I Have A Lot Of Influences. I'm American-schooled. I'm Classically Trained. I'm A Pretty Universal Student, If You Will. I Have A Lot Of Degrees, Which Really Don't Pay The Rent. I Have Two Doctorate Degrees, I Have A Bachelor's Degree, But I'm Still A Cook.

You Are Going To Be What You Put In Your Body, So I Try To Teach That To My Kids, And The Kids Around Me.

Kids Are Now Eating Things Like Edamame And Sushi. I Didn't Know What Shiitake Mushrooms Were When I Was 10 - Most Kids Today Do.