Food has always played a central role in my family. Growing up, dinnertime was always at the kitchen table. Mom prepared a healthy-balanced meal, while Dad made the chocolate chip cookies and milkshakes. We also dined out a lot. As regulars at our local Mexican, Chinese, and Lebanese restaurants, the staff became friends and their menus expanded our palettes.

I married a super-adventurous eater who exposed me to sushi on my first date (when sushi was still novel in America). We traveled the world after marriage, planning our destinations on specific food tours, wine tours, and cooking classes. Now, as a mother, I enjoy baking muffins with my toddler and turning our couch into his pizza oven.

I have combined my passion for food with my love of painting. Food is aesthetically very beautiful. It offers a wide range of colors and textures with which to create a composition. Food is also very relatable. People associate food with specific people and treasured memories. Whether it’s a ritual of going to the donut shop every Saturday, or eating Bing cherries in the summer, food brings people together.