As general medical practitioner Louis Parrish pointed out, cooking has become my favorite form of therapy. In the kitchen, with knife, brush, or whisk, I can chop, baste, and whip away my troubles.

It works! When I have a problem, I take it to the kitchen.

Maybe it's because I come from a long line of great cooks. My parents, my grandparents. My brother can cater back-to-back luau feasts for hundreds without blinking an eye or compromising taste.

"The kitchen may not hold the secret of happiness," said Dr. Parrish. "But it is for me a... 'great escape.'"

For me, too. Cooking can be the finest form of physical and occupational therapy AND a source of deep satisfaction. I never make elaborate meals and rarely work off a recipe. I just get caught in the absolute pleasure of creating a meal.

Forget depression. Ban inertia. Get to dicing, pouring, and measuring. Have fun. Experiment.

As philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein once urged, "Don't think, cook!"

I eat at restaurants and steal ideas. Shamelessly, I try to replicate the magic on my stove. I always tweak the ingredients to suit my taste buds. Like adding diced tomatoes to baked mac and cheese... bacon bits to scratch potato soup... fresh spinach or mushrooms to everything...

As syndicated columnist Harriet Van Horne put it, "Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all."

Of course, I cook with passion. I make a mess. One look at my clothes and you'll know tonight's meal. But, I love to cook... and it shows.

I even have a secret ingredient that I'll share with you. One that you can't get off the shelf. When a loved one praises my meal, my answer is always, "Ahh, it's my secret ingredient... LOVE."

More COOKING Quotations

Don't think...Cook!