HOST JACKIE TANTILLO - A Woman Of Conviction With Guest Chef Dennis Littley

<p>Eunice, my guest, Chef Dennis Littley's mom, was highly educated and a caring nurse who served in WWII.  When raising her family she wanted to transition from being a nurse to  an X-ray Technician. The family needed the income badly, but she felt it was more important for her 2 sons to realize that you have to be respected by others and also respect yourself. </p><p>That's a daring choice for a parent to make, but mom and dad had discussed everything in advance and agreed that a new job would come around. Eventually, Eunice chose to work in the bakery at a local supermarket. She took a shift in the middle of the night to  bake all the breads, pies, etc needed by morning but also to  accommodate her younger son's school schedule.</p><p>I asked my guest if his mom ever felt resentful or embarrassed for going from a highly trained technician to baking in a supermarket and he said she was none of that. She was humble and kind and loved the people she worked with. She didn't have an ego. All Eunice wanted for her children was for them to  be happy.</p><p>Chef Dennis is a successful classically trained chef,  now retired  and a very popular travel and food blogger. He loves to cook for others way more than just cooking a meal for himself. His grandmother taught him a lot about food and cooking and she passed down "the joy of cooking." And now Dennis is sharing the 'joy of it' with all of his followers. You can find out more at https://www.askchefdennis.com/ </p><p>Dennis's maternal grandmother was Mexican and his maternal grandfather's family  was from England and Ireland. Both grandparents were highly educated. Eunice and her 11 siblings were also all well educated and born and raised in Texas. And because Eunice was always studying and or working, she never really had time to cook.  Chef Dennis says that his mom, who he adored dearly, "influenced him and his love for cooking in an offhanded way." "Her lack of cooking skills and my love of food and her encouragement really helped push me in the right direction," sa