I have loved desserts my whole life. I started baking as soon as my parents let me. Because I was brought up in a European household, only fresh ingredients were available. If you wanted something to eat you had to make it. My summers were filled with trips to the store and afternoons of baking, and then devouring, by me and my 4 siblings. My Belgian born father Don Coulon was at this time a computer scientist but was also becoming very well known for his culinary skills in San Diego. The church spaghetti dinners had turned into feasts of Boeuf Bourguignon and Coq au Vin. He had learned about cooking from his mother Anne-Marie Defays who had been a professional chef.