Congratulations to hardlikearmour, whose Sausage and Lentil Gumbo won the Best Dish for Leftovers contest, earning her a $100 Whole Foods Market gift card!

 
The winning cook fishes for dinner; her leftover-minded Sausage and Lentil Gumbo

Q&A with hardlikearmour

It’s midnight and you’re hungry. Do you reach for something savory or sweet?
I'm not likely to eat at midnight, but if it's going to happen, it will probably be something sweet or possibly a hunk of cheese.

An ideal dinner party includes a) 2 people, b) 4 – 6 people, or c) 8 or more.
4-6 people.

How did you first become interested in cooking?
Cooking has always seemed like a natural thing to do to me. I became more interested in tinkering with recipes when I discovered FOOD52 about a year ago.

If you were reincarnated as a single dish, what would you be?
Pizza, particularly thin-crusted, wood-oven style.

Describe your weekend cooking style.
I really don't have one.

 
The avid cake decorator's spectacular, ocean-inspired creations

Is there one ingredient you can’t live without
Talk about impossible questions...I was raised in Wisconsin, so I'm going to have to go with cheese.

Describe your most spectacular kitchen disaster.
A caramel-tastrophe. I completely lost my brain, and was making a batch of caramels in a 3-quart saucepan when I should've been using a 6-quart saucepan. When the cream hit the hot sugar, a lahar of caramel goo spilled over the side of the pot, all over the glass cooktop, down the front of the stove, and onto the floor. It was a disaster of a mess and filled the kitchen with smoke to boot. The good news was that no injuries were sustained, and no villages were buried.

What music (if any) do you listen to in the kitchen?
I don't typically listen to music while cooking. If anything is playing, it's generally courtesy of my husband.

Which cookbook(s) do you reach for most often?
The Cooks Illustrated series, The Cake Bible, and Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking (though not exactly a cookbook).

What is your most cherished food tradition?
Making a huge spread for Thanksgiving. It's my favorite food holiday.

To learn more about hardlikearmour and see all of her recipes, view her profile.