We are excited to announce Lindsay Rudolph as one of our finalists for the Real Women of Philadelphia!

Lindsay is a hard-working teacher, mom of 2 year old Kimberlyn, and wife to her "best friend" Rudy! Health and fitness are really important to Lindsay, and she enjoys figuring out how to make good-for-you food taste great for her family. She has an adorable website called www.cookinlean.com and we here at Real Women of Philadelphia feel so lucky to have found this amazing home cook!

We caught up with busy Lindsay and asked her some questions about her life!

Why is cooking so important to you?

Cooking is important to me because of how it makes me feel. It is something that I do because I enjoy it, not because I have to.  It is my creative outlet. Cooking is also a great way to bring people together. Women, like us, love talking about it and sharing ideas. Just look at the relationships we have built over the past month!  Whenever I get together with girlfriends, cooking always comes up in conversation. It is great to have something to share and be able to understand others.

Describe your biggest kitchen disaster.

Oh my! It was when I attempted to make Paula’s Ultimate Coffee Cake. I didn’t know what a Bundt pan was, therefore used a bread pan. BIG MISTAKE! There is a reason why the directions specifically said Bundt pan; because otherwise it will overflow. The coffee cake was a disaster and ended up in the trash. There was no saving it. My birthday breakfast for Mom was a bust, but it wasn’t a complete loss. There was a good lesson learned here; the pan DOES matter. I am proud to say that my second attempt, using the Bundt pan, went much better!

What is the first dish you ever cooked?

The first thing I ever remember making as a child were Rice Cereal and Marshmallow Treats. They were so much fun to make and I was so proud to share them with my brother and sister. They were big fans of them too. As far as a “real” dish, it would have to be an omelette; ham and cheese back then. Breakfast was where my love for cooking started and all I felt comfortable cooking for a long time. I am still making omelettes, only now I try to get in those veggies more than I did when I was 13!

And here's Lindsay in her own words:

I am a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend and a teacher. This opportunity means so much to me because of the message it will send to all the people in my life, especially my daughter. I want her to see that if you have a dream, go for it. My husband likes to use the quote, “If you tell someone your dream and they don’t laugh, then you haven’t dreamed big enough.” I love this because it tells me not to shoot for what I know I can do or what is “safe”, but to challenge myself. It tells me to go for what I “really” want. Great things do happen to people and dreams do come true for people...so why not me? The Real Women of Philadelphia challenge has taught me how to dream again, just like I did as a teenager. It has also given me an avenue to work toward my dreams. I can’t thank Real Women of Philadelphia enough!!