Random questions with Jessica

This is going to be one of those very rare non-cooking related posts--I will warn you in advance!

I'm behind in posting again so keep checking back--I have at least 3 blog posts to go.

First off, if anyone has any new questions to ask me, please ask! I'll add the questions to my FAQ's if they are TJOC related.

I have hit 50 followers on TJOTJOC which blows my mind! And I would love to know more about you guys. I'm going to randomly answer some questions and I love you to answer them too. When I hit 200 followers on Facebook or 100 followers on the blog, I will give away another copy of TJOC.

1. Favorite restaurant of all time: Russian Tea-time in Chicago. I've actually managed to drag almost all of my friends. Their black currant tea is amazing and all of their sugar cubes are made in-house!

2. Favorite chain restaurant: The Melting Pot. Since they are franchises, they are all slightly different, but I love them. I love fondue and I think TMP is fun. In fact, we are heading there for Josh's birthday tonight!

3. Favorite food of all time: Always a difficult question. My grandmother's ravioli was so good it could run you for all other ravioli. She also made amazing Easter bread.

4. Favorite comfort food: As an Italian-American, I love pasta and it absolutely is comfort food. I also love tortilla soup with homemade tortilla chips and I make a terrific rice pudding. Stuffed artichokes--my grandmother always made them and they remind me of her. I make them pretty frequently.

5. Least favorite spice: I recently learned that I don't like saffron, which is just as well since it's so expensive. I also don't like cinnamon, which puts me in a rare group of people.

6. Tea or coffee? Pepsi or coke? I love tea (hot and cold, green, black, or herbal, tea in all forms). I don't drink coffee. I love Coke (the drink, not the drug) and can't stand Pepsi--it's just too sweet for me.

7. Favorite candy? I'm not big into candy, believe it or not. I LOVE chocolate covered cashews. I also love homemade marshmallows.

8. Favorite alcoholic drink? I love Bloody Marys. I love Chocolatinis. Beerwise, I love fruit lambics, espacially Lindeman's Lambic Cassis. I love fruit beers like Abita Strawberry or Leinie's Berryweiss.

9. Have you ever hosted a meal for more than 6 people? Well, sort of. This Thanksgiving I cooked about 80% of the food and we had 6 people, which is the most I have ever cooked for. It was at mom's house, so I didn't officially host it. I'm looking forward to one day hosting a dinner party!

10. Do you prefer baking or cooking? Baking, absolutely. I like measuring and I like precision (I am a scientist after all). I love making candy, which is the ultimate in precision cooking. I don't like baking at high-altitude because half the time my food doesn't turn out right which is very frustrating.

Now your turn! You don't have to answer all the questions and if you ask new ones, I will edit the post to answer them :)