About Me/FAQ


Hi, my name is Dana Cizmas and I'm the author of this blog.  I grew up in Transylvania, Romania.  So, if you've heard about Dracula then you know where I'm from.  I went to school in Ithaca, upstate New York, got engaged in Los Angeles, got married in Seattle, and lived in Boston for a while.  Now, I live in Pittsburgh, PA together with my husband, Adrian.

I have a B.A. in Communications and two minors in Italian and Marketing from Ithaca College.  I have a graduate degree in Human Resources from Cornell University.  I've also worked in Public Relations for a while.  However, in September 2011, I decided to start this blog and write about my passion -- food.  

I love food, eating good food, buying food, cooking food, talking about food.  Basically, anything food related gets my attention.  I’ve always enjoyed good food and was used to eating great food thanks to my amazing grandmother.  I’ve always loved to watch my grandmother cook and go through her recipe notebook.  But I didn’t know how to cook until about three years ago.  In fact, I didn’t even know how to turn on a stove.  How sad is that?  Now, every time I go to Romania, I not only watch my grandmother cook, but I also cook with her.  How amazing is that?  I enjoy every minute of it.  Every time I return to the States, I bring with me new recipes from my grandmother, which I am eager to try on my own.

Besides food and cooking, I love to travel and explore new cities and restaurants.  In this blog, I will share with you my favorite recipes from my favorite celebrity chefs, cookbooks and food magazines, as well as recipes from my childhood in Transylvania, Romania.  I will also provide suggestions on restaurants and food selections from our travels and our new hometown of Pittsburgh.  At the end of the day, I hope that my blog will put a smile on your face and give you some good ideas on what to make or where to go for dinner tonight.

I look forward to receiving questions, comments and suggestions.  Please feel free to contact me via e-mail at simplyromanesco@gmail.com.

Thanks for stopping by! :)
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