Gosselins - Kate Gosselins Love is in the mix: making meals into memories with family-friendly recipes, tips and traditions

I have written a few books, but never a cookbook. Ive always dreamed of compiling my recipes into one place (other than in my head and occasionally scrawled illegibly on a scrap of paper) for my children to have, to use, and to possibly even cherish as a family recipe legacy. I wasnt sure I believed in myself enough to write a cookbook. After all, Im not a trained chef; Im just a mom who truly enjoys cooking and creating fresh, healthy foods that are immensely enjoyed by my family and friends even if that means taking chances for the sake of learning how flavors and ingredients are best combined. Once I finally decided to write this book, I certainly had no idea how much work was involved until I began the process of writing down my recipes, testing and retesting them, and then taking photos of many of the completed dishes.

I didnt do this alone and I owe huge helpings of thanks to so many people for their constant insistence that I write this book, their encouragement when I became overwhelmed with the details, and especially for their tireless help all along the way.

To Grandma, even though you now live in Heaven, thank you for lovingly helping me discover, from a very young age, how much I love to cook. The kitchen enthusiasm that you sparked in me way back then was the beginning of a passion, a hobby, and a marvelous way to show love to my family and friends, much the same way you did for me when I was young. Thank you for unknowingly passing on your love of cooking to me.

Nana Janet, I imagine youre probably in Heaven cooking with Grandma right now. Thank you for all the cooking lessons over the years and the laughs that went along with them. You gave me truly unforgettable memories that Ill cherish for a lifetime.

To my children, thank you for asking me to write this book and for your enthusiastic participation. And, of course, thank you for your willingness to be my accidental food testers each night when you come to the dinner table.

To Mady, thank you for your amazing and beautiful photographs that you took for this book! You may feel honored to have your work published for the first time, but be assured that I am also honored and so very proud to have yousuch a talented photographer in our family!

To Cara, thank you for going through the book and catching grammar and sentence structure issues. Your careful attention to detail while you pored over each page reminded me of an English teacher correcting my writing project. I sure hope you give me an A. In the end, you saved me so much precious time time that I could spend in the kitchen. Where else, right?

Thank you, thank you, thank you, and so much appreciation goes to Health Communications, Inc. for seeing my vision for this book, supporting it, and making it come to life in brilliant detail.

Specifically, thanks goes to Allison Janse, who has beautiful editing skills which include: persistence, patience, and perfection. To Larissa Henoch, your hard work and valuable expertise added to this long detailed project is in large part why the finished product is as beautiful as it is! And to Kim Weiss, who shared my excitement for this project and worked hard to make sure no details were missed when coordinating this book announcement, media interviews, and book signings.

To Susan: What can I say to adequately describe my immense gratitude to you? Your vision for this book never wavered. You believed in me even when I doubted me. You urged me on when I became frustrated. You filled so many roles and job descriptions that I couldnt possibly list them all here. None have gone unnoticed and all are so very appreciated. And look: Our kitchen baby is finally born! What a gestational period it has been, huh?

To all of our loving and supportive family friends, including, but not limited toDeanna, Jamie, Alli, and Miss Jendo you know I couldnt have made this book happen without you? Thank you for your belief in me and this dream of mine, your cooking and photographing assistance, and even help with my kids when I had deadlines to meet. Most of all, I thank each of you for your patience with me during that timeframe when all I seemed to do was eat, sleep, think, and talk C OOKBOOK . The love, friendship, and help you've given to me and my children is truly immeasurable.