If you're a fan of the Food Network, no doubt you're familiar with Ina Garten, aka Barefoot Contessa, who hosts a cooking show by the same name. Garten, a lovely lady who always has a countertop filled with wonderful treats, is soft-spoken, smiles easily and is known for her recipes that entice many to get out a bowl, a wooden spoon and turn on their ovens.

If you didn't know better, you might think you're meeting Garten when you walk into Karen Happ's Mendota kitchen. Like her famous cooking counterpart, Happ — a lovely lady in her own right who smiles easily and speaks softly (and who ironically resembles the well-defined Garten) — turns the chore of baking into an experience that makes you want to dive into the nearest cookbook and create a culinary masterpiece of your own.

Happ's kitchen — well, actually her entire home — smells of something wonderful baking in her oven. The former elementary school teacher, who recently retired after 30 years in the Mendota School District, moves around her kitchen with ease. From the counter ... to the cupboard ... to the oven ... and back ... she clearly knows her way around the kitchen, and the sweet treats she produces is proof of her culinary calling.