Learning to Cook
But peeling potatoes won't get you very far when it's your turn to come up with dinner, so I had to slowly learn the basics and work my way up. Here's my 1001 things a cook needs to know.
I Like My Knives Dull
Sharp knives scare me. I know that they are the safest to use, but I much prefer my familiar (and very old) paring knife. I have often thought of picking up a brand new shiny paring knife, but the idea scares me. I like the way my old knife feels in my hand. Is that nuts?? Any words of wisdom to share here? The Niftie Fifties
Buy at AllPosters.com
When the House Smells
Mom's Pie Crust Tip
I brought my Mom home for a visit on Mother's Day and while she was here for the week, she shared a little tip which has made her rather famous for her pies at the local church. Apparently instead of cutting the shortening into the ingredients, she rubs the shortening into the flour. I haven't been around to sample one of her pies lately, but I'm definitely putting in an order for when I visit again on her birthday. I want to see if it's as good as she says it is.Me... I buy frozen, but if it's easy, I just might try my hand at making my own!
Photo Credit: Amazon
Betty Crocker Christmas Goodies
Betty Crocker Christmas Cookbook
Amazon Price: $15.10 (as of 07/13/2009)
I don't have this particular one, but the Betty Crocker cookbook that I do own is quite literally falling to bits. It has the best recipes and you can tell how often I have used it by the splatters on the pages.
I might not do a lot of cooking, but I do love to bake. I'm going to add this one to my collection and I'm not even going to wait until Christmas to start trying out the recipes!
Alton Brown to the Rescue
Good Eats Moment - Cutting an Onion
A Food Network minute with Alton Brown. Watch Alton Brown as he shows you how to cut an onion -with less tears!
Runtime: 0:52
61855 views
10 Comments:
Today's Cooking Poll
Okay, just being a wee bit nosy...
Tasteless Herbs and Spices
It might simply be a case of them being too old and being stored incorrectly. I buy small amounts of herbs and spices at the bulk food store (when the bins are full) and immediately transfer them out the plastic bags and into to glass spice jars
that have been dated. If there is still anything in the jar after 6 months, it goes into the composter and replaced with a fresh supply. Spices can last up to a year but no more than that. The faster you use them up the better.Photo Credit: Amazon
Crock Pot
Fix-it And Forget-it 5-ingredient Favorites
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 07/13/2009)
5 ingredients and dinner is ready. Works for me
How to Make Meringue
- How to Make Meringue
- It's all in how you break the eggs.
- Making Perfect Meringue
- So how much sugar should you use? Is there a rule of thumb??
- What Kind of Bowl Should You Use?
- That's covered but even more importantly, what kind of bowl shouldn't you use and why?
How To Make a Pie Crust
- Hot Water Pie Crust
- 1 cup minus 2 Tbsp.
shortening
1/4 hot water
1 Tbsp. milk
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt - The No Roll Crust
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup peanut or vegetable oil
1/4 cup ice water
1/2 teaspoon salt - All Butter Crust
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
3 to 6 Tbsp ice water - Basic Dough
- 1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup vegetable shortening
2-3 tablespoons ice water - Light Tart Crust
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons Splenda sugar substitute
1 pinch kosher salt (1/8 tsp.)
1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
How To Make Rice
4 cups water2 cups uncooked white rice
*salt is optional
That's the amount of rice that we generally cook, but the ratio is always 2:1... which is easy to remember.
In a medium sized pot, bring 4 cups of water to boil. Add rice, stir with a fork to loosen. Don't ask me why you have to loosen it. That's just the way my husband does it.
Cover and reduce heat to low and allow to simmer for about 20 minutes with the lid on. No peeking either! When the 20 minutes is up, remove from the heat source and let stand about another 10 minutes... lid still in place!
After all that time has elapsed, you can bring it to the table and fluff with a fork.
5 Super Easy Homemade Soup Recipes
- Emergency Soup Recipe
- I just checked the ingredients. I don't think that anyone WOULDN'T have these ingredients on hand...carrot, potato cubes, water or broth
celery slices, onion, butter, salt and pepper,
Stock or broth. That's the entire list of ingredients so if you are in a rush, this should work. - Basic Blender Soup
- Here's another easy recipe and I would imagine that increasing the regular milk for the cream would still work if you were in a pinch. Here's the ingredients...
1 cup milk
1/2 cup cream
1 cup chicken bouillon
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon dry sherry
Visit the link for the directions. - Broccoli Soup for the Crockpot
- For those of you who have a crockpot, this broccoli soup has possibilities. Here's what you are going to need...
4 c. water
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1/4 c. chopped onion
2 c. diced potatoes
1 bag frozen, chopped broccoli
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2-1 lb. Velveeta cheese, cubed - Quick, Easy -N- Fast Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe
- You might have to make a run to the supermarket for the canned goods, but once you have all the ingredients, you are good to go. Here's your shopping list.
1 (15 oz.) can whole-kernel corn, drained, or 2 C. frozen
2 (14.5 oz.) cans chicken broth
1 (15 oz.) can black beans
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained
1 (4 oz.) can diced green chilies
1 t. cumin
salt to taste
1 lb. boneless chicken breasts, cooked and chopped (in a real crunch you can use one 10-ounce can chunk chicken) - Debdoozie's Blue Ribbon Chili
- And prep time takes just 10 minutes! Cooking time one hour. Here's your list.
* 2 pounds ground beef
* 1/2 onion, chopped
* 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
* 2 1/2 cups tomato sauce
* 1 (8 ounce) jar salsa
* 4 tablespoons chili seasoning mix
* 1 (15 ounce) can light red kidney beans
* 1 (15 ounce) can dark red kidney beans
In Need Of an Apron
Now Designs Tuscan Harvest Apron
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 07/13/2009)
We have a hardwood floor in our kitchen and you can just imagine how dirty it gets... especially with wet hands dripping. Problem solved with an apron. And if you splash something on this one... you won't even see it!
If Julia Child says it... it must be true
Life itself is the proper binge.
Julia Child
I take it that she loves living almost as much as she likes cooking!
:)
Don't Know How To make Oatmeal?
It just might be a whole lot easier than you thought. Take a look at the video below! You will be glad that you came. ;)
Let Alton Show You How It's Done
Good Eats Moment - Mr Oatmeal
A Food Network minute with Alton Brown. Watch Alton Brown as he makes the perfect pot of oats.
Runtime: 0:59
54508 views
10 Comments:
The Lasagna Secret
My daughter worked with a chef all through highschool and saw what ingredients he used for some of his dishes. My favorite was his lasagna and apparently, his secret spice was NUTMEG!
I have yet to find a recipe for lasagna with nutmeg, but I'm still looking!
5 Easy Dinners to Prepare
- Spaghetti (serve with loaf of crusty bread thanks to your breadmaker)
Eggs, Beans and Sausages (English background)Serve with toast and you are done.
Fish and Chips and Beans (English staple again)
Soup (from a can or packet. Just serve with bread from your breadmaker or if you mastered baking soda biscuits... go for it.
Okay, I can't think of a fifth. I really don't do a lot of cooking around here. Can't you tell. But if push comes to shove, I can feed myself!! ;)
Oh wait... I forgot about the crockpot. We used it tonight and everyone was impressed. And everything but the chunks of chicken came out of a packet. I particularly like recipes where you just add water and plug it in. ;)
Amazon Spotlight - Marshmallow Shooter
Marshmallow Twin Shooter in Blue and Red
Amazon Price: $35.75 (as of 07/13/2009)
Did you notice that you get two marshmallow shooters!! You might not find me doing a whole lot of cooking in my kitchen, but there's no reason why you still can't have fun!!
The Joys of a Crockpot
Hamilton Beach 33141 4-Quart Oval Slow Cooker
Amazon Price: $25.49 (as of 07/13/2009)
Britt and I spent the day shopping for stuff for the house. It was so nice to put everything into a crockpot, go out for the day and come home to find dinner ready to be served. Only wish that I had started using it earlier. Certainly makes dinner easy!
New StickyNote
Did you know that there is NOTHING WRONG with moldy cheese. Apparently you just cut it off and its good to go. My husband works in the food industry and laughed the first time I threw out a hunk of cheese. I will tell you more about cheese in the coming days.
People Actually Like Cooking??
Okay, some of these dishes do look good... but who cleans up the mess when you're done?? I think that's the part I hate the most.
Trout Cookery Worksh...
Trout Cookery Worksh...
Chef Sean Brock
Trout Cookery Worksh...
Trout Cookery Worksh...
Take a Look
- Nigella by BigGirlBlue
- You just never know what you are going to find here on Squidoo. I found Nigella just this morning.
Cooking Gadgets on Amazon
Gadgetology: Kitchen Fun with Your Kids, Using 35 Cooking Gadgets for Simple Recipes, Crafts, Games and Experiments
Amazon Price: $11.21 (as of 07/13/2009)
The As Seen On TV Cookbook: Delicious, Home-Style Recipes for Cooking with America's Favorite Kitchen Gizmos & Gadgets
Amazon Price: (as of 07/13/2009)
Trudeau Pot Clip Spoon Rest
Amazon Price: $6.95 (as of 07/13/2009)
Herb/Parsley Mill
Amazon Price: $19.99 (as of 07/13/2009)
Gadgetology: Kitchen Fun with Your Kids, Using 35 Cooking Gadgets for Simple Rec
Amazon Price: (as of 07/13/2009)
Supposed To Live Like This??
Just a Thought??
Could cooking be genetic??
They Touched My Food??
"It's so beautifully arranged on the plate - you know someone's fingers have been all over it."Julia Child
*now that just grosses me out... or maybe it's just me. I love going out to dinner, but I certainly don't want to think about who has actually touched my food!!
Great Stuff on eBay
Buying the stuff isn't the problem ;)
Every once in a while I like to go perusing at what gadgets I have that just might be fun to try out.
Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by
New Top Chef Blogs
Here's my favorite link:
The Ice Cream Maker
Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker
Amazon Price: $79.95 (as of 07/13/2009)
It's getting hot out there! Lets just hope that these temps last all summer long. I think that we are due!
Stop By and Say Hello :)
clouda9 wrote...
Super stuff shared on this lens. 5 *'s and look for your lovely mug on my Squidoo lens, www.squidoo.com/clouda9
Posted July 02, 2009
mulberry wrote...
Hmm, may have to try the open flame to help when I'm chopping up my next onion...handy stuff!
Posted June 02, 2009
chefkeem wrote...
This is a useful lens to come back to and brush up on those basic skills we think we have mastered already. I really love your catchy title. 5*s
Posted April 26, 2008
New Table of Contents
- I Like My Knives Dull
- The Niftie Fifties
- When the House Smells
- Mom's Pie Crust Tip
- Betty Crocker Christmas Goodies
- Alton Brown to the Rescue
- Today's Cooking Poll
- Tasteless Herbs and Spices
- Crock Pot
- How to Make Meringue
- How To Make a Pie Crust
- How To Make Rice
- 5 Super Easy Homemade Soup Recipes
- In Need Of an Apron
- If Julia Child says it... it must be true
- Don't Know How To make Oatmeal?
- Let Alton Show You How It's Done
- The Lasagna Secret
- 5 Easy Dinners to Prepare
- Amazon Spotlight - Marshmallow Shooter
- The Joys of a Crockpot
- New StickyNote
- People Actually Like Cooking??
- Take a Look
- Cooking Gadgets on Amazon
- Supposed To Live Like This??
- Just a Thought??
- Great Stuff on eBay
- New Top Chef Blogs
- Hate 2 Cook Senior ;)
- The Ice Cream Maker
- Stop By and Say Hello :)
