Best Collection A box of recipes handwritten by the women in my family, from my great-grandmother to my aunt and mother. We all like to cook by instinct and intuition, so I'm glad they wrote things down every once in a while. But I have to handle it with care—some of the cards are so old, they're disintegrating.


Best Way to Spend A Day Off Walking through New York City. It's constantly changing. I'll go back to an area I visited four years ago, and it's completely different. But that's a good thing because it means there will always be new neighborhoods to eat my way through.


Best Childhood Memory My mom liked to infuse my life with a lot of magic. When she read my fortune cookies, the predictions were full of princesses and castles and jewels and pirates. When I got old enough to read them, I was shocked to find out how boring they really were!


Best Stress Reliever Creating something I can use. I'll knit or cook—or work on a motorcycle, a skill my husband is teaching me. One of my latest projects was painting nature-inspired throw pillows.


Best Part of Growing Up in California Disneyland. Most people think of it as an amusement park, but we went so often that it was my education on everything from innovation to architecture from around the world. I often wonder what Walt would think if he could see it today.

Best Quick Recipe Hot fudge sundae. But forget the fake syrupy stuff: Melt down a bar of chocolate, mix it into some warmed-up whipping cream and put it on top of ice cream. Add some sprinkles, and you've got a delicious treat.

NEXT STORY

Next Story