Biographie de Karina Ann Betlem
Karina Betlem grew up in a family of 5 children, where love and good food was dished out in large portions. Her love of food and cooking is attributed directly to her Mom, but it didn't happen overnight. Cooking and 'experimenting' with recipes finally became a passion in her mid 20's. This passion grew into a desire to learn as much as she could about food, ingredients and healthy eating. Chocolate she discovered was a major food group, so she also began 'inventing' recipes to make sure she and all her own family got the recommended servings per day.
In 1980 she gathered hundreds of recipes from family members and compiled them into a handwritten cookbook as an heirloom to be handed down generation to generation. For many years after that she had the thought of writing a cookbook herself, but life seemed to plod on without this being realized. Several years ago, after seeing the plight of some poor Mexican families, she decided now was the time to do something to help.
She had always enjoyed writing, had a good rapport with people and of course, loved to eat! The idea came to her to write an authentic Mexican cookbook using the recipes of several women and men from Colonia Pancho Villa, then giving the proceeds back to the community to assist in their daily lives. Four years later, that dream came true.