Greetings and welcome to Sofrito Magazine, created to bring awareness to Latino cuisine and culture, sharing my personal experiences cooking, playing with recipes using traditional ingredients (and some not so traditional), and drawing on my three decades of work in the restaurant business. Born in Brooklyn, NY, moved back to Bayamon, Puerto Rico,I learned to cook watching my mother going to the local markets, feeling and listening to ingredients to make sure they were fresh and ready to eat. I learned to marry different flavors not measuring the ingredients but tasting as I went along. At 17 I started working in restaurants in P.R. as a waiter and part-time cook when needed in the kitchen. Moved to New Haven, CT in 1989 worked at various restaurants in the area Including Bruxelles, Brasserie and Bar and Scoozi's Italian Bistro. Attended New York Restaurant School and graduated with honors in Culinary Arts and restaurant management, practicing my craft at externships in Dolce (Stamford, CT) worked at a Country Club in Weston, CT. I worked at Spazzi's in Fairfield, CT, La Cremailliere in Banksville, NY as a pastry chef assistant to Wendy Laurent, and La Colombe D'or. I made the transition to work for Compass Group (North American Division) as a catering supervisor, becoming Catering Manager. Using Sofrito as my medium, I decided to combine my experiences with food and my Latino culture and heritage. Sofrito Magazine is available online as a webzine for download in English or Spanish via the itunes or Google apps. Each issue will have book and restaurant reviews, interviews, recipes, tidbits, announcements of restaurant openings and much more. The highlight is Que es Eso? (What's That?), an in-depth look into the origins and culture of kitchen gadgets, utensils, herbs, and spices that have made their way into the Latino kitchens with indigenous roots intertwined with Old World traditions.