Eve Smythe

There are few things in life that can taken for granted. One is that no one can refuse good baby back ribs — particularly when Adam Casillas' ribs are on the grill. However, perfection isn't that easy. It requires dedication ...

Here's to those all-too-fleeting Kodak moments. It seems like only yesterday that Eloise Maitland was lifting her daughters, Clarissa and Nicole, onto the kitchen counter while she cooked. Now it's her granddaughter, Lexi, who assumes that coveted spot and listens ...

Call it an epiphany, or the fulfillment of a long-held desire. Either way, Melissa Weis has shown that following one's dreams can be a blessing. Though not a professional food blogger by trade, Weis began posting her culinary blogs online ...

In the quiet of her kitchen, Cynthia Schneider creates. Not with the fancy gadgetry that's fast becoming this generation's culinary crutch, but with a simple, well-crafted knife to slice and dice. "Life is complicated enough," Schneider says. "No need to ...

Here's to the times when Sandra Benintende opts to "just do it," throwing caution to the wind and finding new ways to combine ingredients from her refrigerator to create delicious meals. That explains why her macaroni and cheese generally includes ...

For those who have more than a few pounds to lose, it's hard to heed the advice of someone who doesn't know the agony of obesity. But when the speaker is Peter Maccarrone, who shed a whopping 90 pounds by ...

In a world saturated with flashy cookbooks by superstar chefs, Audrey Kelley keeps one of her best recipes on a tattered slip of paper. She received the prized praline recipe nearly 30 years ago, when she was a health, education ...

It's safer than gastric bypass surgery, easier than Jenny Craig and more forgiving than Weight Watchers. Lou Cunningham dropped 80 pounds in his own unique way — by barbecuing. Cunningham's affection for his homemade barbecued tri-tip, chicken and fish was ...

Much of what makes Candy Gooding what she is can be attributed to her mother. It was her mother who did everything she could for the family — the one who cooked from scratch so her kids didn't have to ...

Maybe growing your own food may not be your cup of tea. That's probably what Maureen Durkin thought when she first decided to toss a few seeds into the ground. Not exactly Jack in the Beanstalk stuff, but her initial ...

Someone had to do it, she reasoned. So Rose Topliss stepped up to the plate when New Hope Lutheran Church in Agoura Hills was looking a volunteer to cook for the homeless. Every month 15 diners are treated to Topliss' ...

If it's Tuesday, it must be food day, and Suz Montgomery will be bringing wit and wisdom to seniors attending her food and health discussions. Montgomery has developed a program focusing on improving the lives of seniors that has made ...

You seldom know what your legacy will be — unless you're Charlotte Johnson. To those who know her, it's hard to think of her without imagining a platter of delicious cinnamon rolls. Nearly 40 years ago Johnson and her family ...

As the anniversary of her mother's passing nears, Joan Mayer reflects upon her mother's gentle guidance, her uncompromising devotion to family and her unbridled joy of cooking. Mayer embraces those same qualities and honors her memory with a passion for ...

Martha Stewart's coconut cake may be blissful, but it's Suze McClellan's adaptation of this timeless classic that really takes the cake. Her relentless pursuit of perfecting this dessert eventually landed her honors at the Ventura County Fair. Putting her own ...