"As far back as I can remember, I have had loving memories of gardens. My childhood summers were spent with my grandparents in the Pacific Northwest. Every summer they would plant a huge garden and I got to help with the harvest. When it was cucumber harvesting time, the whole family would come from all over Washington, Oregon, and Idaho to help with the massive canning effort. We had an assembly line. My job was to put the grape leaf and garlic cloves into the jar before the cucumbers. Canning and preserving was a family affair. My grandmother passed away in 1995 and I still have a jar of pickles from the last harvest. She is responsible for my love of cooking and making people happy with food, especially produce.”
