Hello, my name is Pam,  I live in rural northern New Mexico in an off-grid solar home my architect husband built.  We live at an elevation of 7,444 between the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and the Rio Grande Gorge. 

I've had a love for food and cooking my entire life, the photos at left are me now & at age three, there have been so many cakes in between.  

I started working with a caterer professionally about 20 years ago. Caterers have to possess  the ability to eliminate undue stress, problem solve, and build a temporary restaurant in a tent in the middle of a field that's capable of  serving a delicious meal to 200 wedding guests. Cooking is constant multitasking. I've learned a lot from the challenging logistics of catering. The more you can do in advance, the better. 

 I created ContemPlate to help bring menu ideas, meal plans, and entertaining ease into your home. My goal is to help the cook, host, or hostess sit down and enjoy their creations with their family and guests. A line from the movie "A Christmas Story"  resonates  with me, " My mother had not had a hot meal for herself in 15 years". It made me think about what a mad rush it can be to get a meal on the table and how important it is to sit down with everyone to eat it.   Life is too short, delegate more and enjoy the ones you're with.