mini salmon cakes

I remember using steamed and flaked salmon fillet the first time I made these. This time, I just combined canned salmon and tuna together with finely chopped onions & celery, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper and egg. The mixture was formed into mini salmon patties, rolled in extra breadcrumbs and pan-fried in olive oil until golden brown. For the dip, I combined mayo with finely chopped tomatoes, onions, lemon juice, salt & pepper. I guess I was about ten years old when I started cooking simple dishes. My mother loved to cook and she cooked all our meals everyday. But there were times when she was busy and welcomed some help in the kitchen. I remember the first time she asked me to cook a simple dish using canned salmon. It was the first dish I cooked all by myself from start to finish. It was an easy everyday dish with diced potatoes and sliced red bell pepper, sauteed in garlic, onions and tomatoes, which is a common base for many Filipino dishes. This initial encouragement my mother gave me must have sparked my interest and curiosity for cooking which went on to this day. Eventually it led to my love of baking and further experimenting in the kitchen. We would get old copies of Good Housekeeping magazines and the recipes featured in them always inspired us and gave us new ideas to try. We would also adjust most of the recipes since not all the ingredients listed were available. We had fun trying out the ideas for food presentation as well as all the different combination of flavors. Failure wasn't frustrating but it just kept us going. My mother and I shared a common interest not only in cooking but in cookbooks and kitchen gadgets as well. I'm sure everyone with an interest in food and cooking has a personal experience to relate. For me, it all started with a simple can of salmon.