Food has the amazing ability to make people happy, which is why I tend to offer food to my teams every chance I get. I keep a candy bowl at my desk. I know everyone’s snack preferences and favorite foods because I believe it’s important to keep my teams well-fed during any major push. I am also a huge fan of potlucks, not only because of my foodie tendencies, but also because I love the sense of community I feel when I’m sharing home-cooked food with friends and family.

Recipes also have a special place in my heart because they are a prime example of synthesizing information—Taking verbal instructions from your mom and writing them down sequentially so that you can cook a fantastic dish is great practice. When you synthesize well and execute based on what you learned, you get a tasty finished product. When you synthesize incorrectly, you end up delivering an unsuccessful project (and inedible food).

I hope you enjoy these delicious recipes. I’m sharing two favorites first but will share more of my crowd-pleasers over time (or upon request).