People who like to cook like to talk about food....without one cook giving another cook a tip or two, human life might have died out a long time ago.

The table is a meeting place, a gathering ground, the source of sustenance and nourishment, festivity, safety, and satisfaction. A person cooking is a person giving: even the simplest food is a gift.

In this world of uncertainty and woe, one thing remains unchanged: Fresh, canned, pureed, dried, salted, sliced, and served with sugar and cream, or pressed into juice, the tomato is reliable, friendly, and delicious. We would be nothing without it.

People who like to cook like to talk about food....without one cook giving another cook a tip or two, human life might have died out a long time ago.

On Saturday mornings I would walk to the Flavor Cup or Puerto Rico Importing coffee store to get my coffee. Often it was freshly roasted and the beans were still warm. Coffee was my nectar and my ambrosia: I was very careful about it. I decanted my beans into glass...and I ground them in little batches in my grinder.

The best way to eat crabs, as everyone knows, is off newspaper at a large table with a large number of people.

For the socially timid, the kitchen is the place to be. At least, it is a place to start.