Recipes for love

Take one man. Add a flare for cooking, a love of writing and a witty sense of humor. Combine that with years of dating experience under his belt. Mix a passion to entertain with a fierce determination to avoid a 9-to-5 desk job. Voilà! You have Rocky Fino, an Arcadia native who will change the way you think about gourmet cooking.

Fino is the author of "Will Cook for Sex," a clever take on wooing the opposite sex, not with movie-star good looks or seductive pickup lines, but with quality food.

In the shaded back patio of his father's condo in Pasadena, Fino placed his skewered "pigskin spedinis" on the large, marble-top barbecue. As the seasoned strips of meat sizzled on the grill, Fino explained his ultimate goal was to produce a user-friendly cookbook, featuring simple ingredients, utensils and recipes so readers can easily recreate these meals on the first try.

"Most master chefs write cookbooks as extensions of themselves," Fino said. "They include recipes that can't be pulled off at home. I wanted to encourage guys and give them a good reason to get in the kitchen."

Fino is quick to point out that he's not a professional chef, but rather a self-proclaimed regular guy showing other regular guys easy steps to produce tasty, gourmet-style meals.

He exemplified this "regular guy" persona as he sautéed shrimp - with a Hansa beer and tongs in hand - and explained why he did not include a wine pairing section in his book.

"People are so pompous about food and wine," Fino said as he flung two dozen or so shrimp in the air. "Wine snobs are annoying. The key is that life is fun."

And after sampling an "apple endive" salad, some "game night winglets" with a Dijon mustard dipping sauce and "tomatillo shrimp," it's not hard to believe that this regular guy knows his way around a kitchen.

Cooking has always been a constant in Fino's life. His father, Fred Finocchiaro, whom Fino endearingly refers to as "the Old Man" in his book, worked in a restaurant during his early 20s, where he learned basic cooking skills. And although Fred became an accountant, he still loved to entertain with quality food.

"We never had chips and seven-layer dip at our house," Fino joked.

Whether it was a holiday dinner or a meal during a rugged camping trip, Fino said that his father always went above and beyond.

The father-and-son duo also frequently dined at top culinary destinations throughout California, where they would discover new exotic flavors and then incorporate them in their own dishes.

Though Fino had a knack for cooking, he was intrigued by the world of radio, television and film, a field he majored in at Temple University in Philadelphia. After graduating, Fino decided he wanted to pursue a writing career and participated in a professional writing program at USC.

Soon after entering the program, Fino realized he did not want to be a starving artist, a fiction writer striving for his big break. However, he also did not want to be strapped down in a shirt-and-tie desk job.

Fino ultimately decided to get his MBA at Cal State, San Bernardino. During this time, he came up with the idea to create a fun cookbook catering to both men and women and filled with humorous quotes, relatable anecdotes and vivid pictures.

And that's just what Fino did. In "Will Cook for Sex," he provides a guy's insight into the crazy abyss of dating and relationships in addition to his step-by-step recipes.

Yet the book is not crude, offensive or condescending in the slightest. Think of Fino as your best friend, giving you advice before the big date. Only these friendly pointers are not cheesy pickup lines or suave moves, but rather cooking tips to impress your date - and they most likely will work!

"Warning: A cute move with beer and pizza ONLY works if you're Ben Affleck," Fino wrote. "If you have that kind of confidence in your game, great; but, remember, you're not Ben Affleck and the scene was scripted, anyway."

He structured the book based on common experiences when courting the opposite sex: the big date, the morning after, the weekend pass, her bunco night potluck and the holidays. He even included convenient, business-card size "cheat sheets" for dinners at her place at the end of the book.

And though Fino stressed that the book is not meant to be a literal dating itinerary, the situations are relatable and the meals can come in handy.

"The holiday [section of the book] is based on families I've met," Fino said. "I would show up on Thanksgiving Day, and their big meal would be canned beans, a green gelatin thing and HoneyBaked Ham."

Fino said it was difficult pitching his idea to publishers. He recalled being "turned down by 80 percent, while 20 percent didn't even reply." He then stumbled upon Stephens Press, a small Las Vegas publishing company that grasped Fino's vision.

"Today's publishers seek more than great writing, or even a great idea. Authors must offer a platform with which to reach prospective book buyers," Stephens Press President Carolyn Hayes Uber said. "Rocky Fino's verve and wit and high energy convinced us he'd connect with audiences, and that tipped the scales in favor of publishing 'Will Cook for Sex,' and we haven't been disappointed."

Fino, along with his father, participated in almost every facet of production, creating the recipes, writing the text, suggesting the layout and participating in the hectic three-day photo shoot for the 174-page book.

Once the book was finished, Fino received an advance copy in the mail. He described seeing his vision for the first time in print - with a professional jacket cover and his name on the sleeve - as "an invigorating moment."

"It's a great conversation piece," Fino said about writing a book. "You tell someone you sell insurance, they stop and slide way. But you say you wrote a book, ears perk up. That's instant curiosity, and then you give the title, and the conversation goes anywhere from there."

Fino is currently promoting his book, attending signings, speaking at events and appearing on local morning television programs in various states throughout the country. He hopes to create a steady buzz and possibly write a follow-up to "Will Cook for Sex."

And after indulging in the "blue collar soufflé," it makes perfect sense that women have become Fino's main audience. The book's female seal of approval only further proves that "Will Cook for Sex" is not a stereotypical, sloppy bachelor's cookbook.

Hayes Uber agreed.

"To women, once they see the book - the creative yet easy recipes, the beautiful layout and photographs - they also connect with the desirability of a man who cooks," Hayes Uber said. "A man who isn't so two-dimensional with gender roles, a man who can be open and sensitive holds a great appeal for today's woman."