My passion for cooking and wellness began at a young age. The root of who I am today bloomed from watching my mom’s constant creation in the kitchen.

We would get home from school to her trial and erroring my dad’s favorite dessert they tried from the South of France, a new take on classic chicken breast rolled and stuffed with herbs from the garden and whipping up a side of rosemary potatoes. My mom never let a friend go hungry or a picky eater leave the table without trying something new “for a quarter”.

She loved hosting cooking classes in our kitchen to share how easy it can be to make a recipe! She loved creating confidence in young women to cook healthy meals for their families. She taught us there can never be a wrong recipe, just a lesson learned and a good to know for next time.

Her license plate was even, “The OC Cook” - and she was. She inspires me every single day. My mom passed away in August 2019. She even was in the middle of writing a cookbook. I hope to live the legacy of the OC Cook through The Balanced Life.