ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Jean Lee, the Julia Child of Manhattan, Kansas, who is a kitchen genius, entrepreneur, teacher, gardener, dietitian, food-safety expert, and my mom.

My dad and physics advisor, Ron Lee.

Ken (my favorite dinner date), our junior chefs, May and Sarah, and Charlie, who considers pizza the most perfect food.

My mother-in-law, Jan Heinecke, Baker of Bars and Queen of Frosting, who has shared many secret family recipes with me.

Photographer Amber Procaccini, who captured the kitchen fun and chaos so beautifully, and the smart, funny, beautiful kids whose smiles light up the pages of this book.

My editors, Jonathan Simcosky and Mary Ann Hall, Nyle Vialet, David Martinell, and the fantastic design team at Quarry Books.

My agents, Peter Knapp and Blair Wilson.

Jennifer, Kari, and Kristine, whose kitchens we invaded for the sake of food science, Susan Nackers, and all of the parents who helped by driving kids and washing dishes during photo shoots.

Zoë François, Michelle Gayer, Molly Herrmann, Tim McKee, and Andrew Zimmern, who wrote words of wisdom about food, science, and creativity for this book.

Cookbooks, columns, and chefs whose recipes I’ve used and adapted through the years: Alice Waters, Barefoot Contessa at Home by Ina Garten, Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook (1976 edition), Cook’s Illustrated, How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman, Donna Nordin, Jerusalem: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Julia Child, Marcella Hazan, the New York Times Food section, Recipes from the Cook’s Workshop (unpublished recipe collection) by Jean Lee, and the Sunset Pasta Cook Book.

The food-science books that I referred to extensively while writing this: Foods: A Scientific Approach by Helen Charley and Connie Weaver and The Kitchen as Laboratory edited by Cesar Vega, Job Ubbink, and Erik Van der Linden.