I’ve talked about my college roomie a lot on this here blog. And for good reason.

She’s one of my best friends and I’m pretty lucky to have had her during my four years of college. She’s hilarious (make-you-cry-your-pants hilarious), a good listener, insanely intelligent and she’s a fellow food lover—and a knowledgeable one, at that!

*Sidenote story: Stef and I didn’t know each other before college. My freshman year I was put into a suite with 8 girls total, with each girl having her own room (including Stef) except two, which shared (that’s me! frugality rocks!) I casually mentioned where I lived and it turned out she lived down the street from me (literally down the street). If that ain’t fate, I don’t know what is.

I digress. Stef and I are rare finds. We cooked almost every night in college, together and separate.  But the point is, we were usually in the kitchen together. We planned meals together (crockpot soups, brisket tacos and mojo chicken for cinco de mayo, popped tomato pasta) weekly and had this great camaraderie in our tiny little kitchen. I loved it.

She comes from a family that knows their food. Her mom’s family owns a farm, Weiser Family Farms, that sells their amazing produce (they’re famously known for their potatoes) to renowned chefs (oh hey, Tom Colicchio and Mark Peel) and restaurants all over. We even ate the well-known pee wee taters at the Prado in San Diego this past summer at a wedding!

Up above is a picture from my freshman year of college. Stef was a sophomore and we were about to go rage at a highlighter party (fun fact: that highlighter party never happened—we got turned away at the door. hah!) Check out my roommates hideous stylish wall decor.

Stef taught me all about shallots, spices, crushed red pepper, roasted garlic and tomatoes. Really, she did. She opened up the door of food as much as the mother of the children I watched, if not more.

We used to make roasted garlic baked asparagus and inhale those things while we watched The Hills and listened to LC’s infinite wisdom.

We would boil an artichoke (she taught me how!) and dip the leaves in copious amounts of butter.

She introduced me to macaroons, for heaven sakes! She’s like the food goddess!

Remember how I said her family owned a farm? I got to work for them one summer (and still occasionally do), which has also brought to light new and interesting foods.

Do you see that picture above? She’s the second to the left, the rest of the peeps pictured are her mom and uncles. I asked for her autograph but have yet to receive it…

So thanks, Stef. You’ve really broadened my horizons when it comes to food and everything about it. If I owe anyone any of my food growth and love of food, it’s definitely you.

Psst…Check out Stef’s family farm here online. If you live in the SoCal area, find a farmer market with their produce–they’re everywhere. And click here for various press they’ve received, like LA Weekly and the LA Times. This is one foodie family you want to know.