ITALIAN cookery enthusiast Alessandra Toft has fulfilled a lifetime's ambition to start her own business.

It has involved many years of planning and discussion with family and friends - and, all the while, she amassed an encyclopaedic knowledge of everything to do with food.

She is now ready to launch her business, Perfect Cooks - and is looking forward to sharing her know-how and passion for good food with the general public.

Her love affair with food began when Alessandra was three years old.

Both her mother and grandmother were Italian and every year she visited Italy for about six weeks. She naturally absorbed many elements of the Italian lifestyle - and particularly its emphasis on food. In Italian culture, family gatherings revolve around food.

She recalls: "I watched my mum and aunties happily cooking in the kitchen, chatting while they cooked. Cooking was never a chore on these occasions."

She also remembers that when she was little, she would often help her mum in the kitchen - for example, while her mum made pasta, she would turn the handle on the pasta machine.

"This was in the days when, if you wanted fresh pasta, you had to make your own," said Alessandra.

In her teens, she soon got the reputation for being a great dessert and cake maker and her culinary creations earned her the name Queen of Tarts.

She qualified as a home economist and, after leaving university, she worked in the food industry for many years, with her main focus being on developing recipes.

"This provided me with a great background for creating successful recipes," said Alessandra. "I love learning new things."

She is currently completing a Masters degree in nutrition - inspired by the fact she has been able to improve her own health by making changes to her diet.

She explained: "Up until a few years ago, I suffered with daily headaches and allergies and was relying on painkillers to cope.

"Today with my new way of eating, I feel like a new woman. I have much more energy and vigour. My focus and clarity of mind have also improved!"

To compensate for removing certain foods from her diet, such as cake, bread and desserts, she has had to find delicious, tasty, alternative treats.

Now she wants to share her secrets through Perfect Cooks, which will offer bespoke cookery lessons for all abilities. Alessandra will also continue to give cookery demonstrations - she is a regular visitor at the Looking Well, Bentham's healthy living centre.

"I am looking forward to teaching people to cook who are absolute beginners or who would like to learn how to bake or perhaps want to learn how to cook family meals," said Alessandra.

She can be contacted at info@perfectcooks.com