Help! I have NO idea how to cook!

[Mrs. B]

I teach people how to cook and I am always surprised to find out how many people do not know how to measure properly. Get yourself a set of dry measuring cups (for dry ingredients and stuff like shortening and peanut butter) and measuring spoons and a liquid measuring cup (for liquids - milk/oil, etc.). Lots of people think that the long-handled spoon they stir their tea with is a teaspoon and the big spoon they use for the mashed potatoes is a tablespoon. No, No, No - you have to use the real measuring spoons/cups. After you get measuring, the rest is easy - just follow the directions in the recipe. DO NOT just start adding all of the ingredients together. READ the paragraph of instructions of what to do with those ingredients. If you come to a cooking term you don't understand, just google it. As a beginner, don't go trying to substitute ingredients. Go and buy the correct ingredient and your food will be fabulous! good luck!

[Sylvia]

Don't feel bad dear.... happens to the best of us.

My mother who was once a fabulous cook ran out of steam by the time she got to me (I was born when she was 43) I remember her "cooking fits" cooking everything on HIGH as fast as she could move.... and often ate charred steak or burned hamburger.

Then by the time I was 18 both parents had passed. I was on my own.

I remember trying beans for the first time... hard and horrible. Cake... turned out something like cement with chocolate frosting... Even potatos were not immune to my misadventures. (never shred a fresh potato then try to fry it)

In fact I didn't really come into my own cooking until I invested in a REALLY good set of pots and pans. No more K-mart cheapies for me. Then I started collecting cookbooks. Second hand stores are great for this... I got betty crocker, better homes & gardens cook books and of course the "Frugal Gormet".(all $2ea or less) I watched cooking shows instead of soap operas and talk shows and eventually I learned what spices went together.

So... Always have onions, celery, green peppers, carrots and garlic on hand. The cajuns call Onion, Celery, Green peppers, the trinity of good cooking. There is a reason for that. ITS GOOD!

Beef always benefits from the trinity and garlic.

Beans are never seasoned until cooked done!! (hubby learned this one recently) Sort and Wash beans... place in pot with LOTS of water.... bring to boil and cook for at least 1/2 hour, then turn down the heat and let simmer for another 2-ish hours... when the beans are tender and do not have hard skins, season with salt and pepper.... perhaps some cumin and ceyene... depending on taste. (by the way... black beans and baby oysters are gross! don't try that) If you are not sure a seasoning will suit the dish... dip out some in a small bowl or cup and season that.... taste. If its tasty... add seasoning to the pot.... if it's gross.... You haven't ruined the whole dish.

There are dry measuring cups and spoons and liquid measuring cups and spoons. Know the difference.



Good luck..

S

[lucid]

This recipe is EASY, healthy, and does NOT taste low fat. You can prepare it a day or two ahead of time and then bake when ready. After it has baked, it freezes very well.

Easy Cheese Lasagna
6 servings

1 jar (28 oz) spaghetti sauce (or use home-made sauce)
6 uncooked lasagna noodles (the regular noodles, NOT the no-boil kind)
1 container (15 oz) fat-free ricotta cheese
1-2 cups sliced or chopped raw veggies such as mushrooms, broccoli, and bell pepper
1 pkg (8 oz) shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 11 x 7 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/3 of the sauce on bottom of dish; arrange 3 noodles in a single layer over sauce. Top with another 1/3 of the sauce, all of the ricotta cheese and veggies, and ½ of the mozzarella cheese, then remaining noodles in a single layer. Spread evenly with remaining sauce.

Cover dish with foil; bake until noodles are tender and mixture is piping hot, about 1 hour. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and bake uncovered 5 minutes longer. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting

301 calories, 7.2 g fat, 4.6 g fiber.

Notes:

Freezes well.

Can prepare a day or so ahead of time and bake when ready. Use the regular noodles, not the no-boil kind.

Can use an 8 x 8 dish if you do not have an 11 x 7.

I usually double the recipe and make one dish as above, and add mild Italian turkey sausage to the other. For the sauce, I use Bertolli Tomato and Basil or Classico. Some of the other low-fat sauces were a little too watery. For kids or those who don’t like spicy food, just make the plain cheese lasagna as above, or add lean ground beef instead of turkey Italian sausage.

[lucid]

Marinara Sauce

Amounts are approximate.

2 TBSP light olive oil (light means light in taste/flavor, not light in calories)
1 TBSP minced garlic (I keep a small jar in the fridge all the time)
1 11-ounce can tomato puree
1 15-oz can peeled, diced tomatoes (plain, or the ones with basil and oregano flavoring)
a pinch of brown sugar (optional)

In a medium-sized nonstick sauce pan, warm the olive oil on medium heat.
Add minced garlic and saute until lightly brown.
Add tomato puree and diced tomatoes
Bring JUST to a boil, not a rolling boil, as that can make your sauce bitter.
Add a pinch of brown sugar if desire, again to keep it from being bitter, but this is really optional.
Reduce heat and cover.
Simmer for at least 10 minutes, but longer is even better.
Toward the end of your cook time, remove lid and let thicken a bit if you like.

After you add the tomato products, you can add meat if you like. Frozen turkey or beef meatballs are great. Or use browned ground beef or Italian turkey sausage.

Note: To brown the Italian turkey sausage, remove the casing and crumble it up. After browning, use it in your recipe or keep some in the freezer to reheat quickly.

If you don't have tomato puree, just use tomato sauce, and a little tomato paste if you have it. Tomato sauce alone will work just fine, though.

[vcphillips]

Originally Posted by lucid

This recipe is EASY, healthy, and does NOT taste low fat. You can prepare it a day or two ahead of time and then bake when ready. After it has baked, it freezes very well.

Easy Cheese Lasagna
6 servings

1 jar (28 oz) spaghetti sauce (or use home-made sauce)
6 uncooked lasagna noodles (the regular noodles, NOT the no-boil kind)
1 container (15 oz) fat-free ricotta cheese
1-2 cups sliced or chopped raw veggies such as mushrooms, broccoli, and bell pepper
1 pkg (8 oz) shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 11 x 7 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/3 of the sauce on bottom of dish; arrange 3 noodles in a single layer over sauce. Top with another 1/3 of the sauce, all of the ricotta cheese and veggies, and ½ of the mozzarella cheese, then remaining noodles in a single layer. Spread evenly with remaining sauce.

Cover dish with foil; bake until noodles are tender and mixture is piping hot, about 1 hour. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and bake uncovered 5 minutes longer. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting

301 calories, 7.2 g fat, 4.6 g fiber.

Notes:

Freezes well.

Can prepare a day or so ahead of time and bake when ready. Use the regular noodles, not the no-boil kind.

Can use an 8 x 8 dish if you do not have an 11 x 7.

I usually double the recipe and make one dish as above, and add mild Italian turkey sausage to the other. For the sauce, I use Bertolli Tomato and Basil or Classico. Some of the other low-fat sauces were a little too watery. For kids or those who don’t like spicy food, just make the plain cheese lasagna as above, or add lean ground beef instead of turkey Italian sausage.

can you use cottage cheese instead of riccotta?? I do not liek riccotta cheese- but - is the cottage cheese to runny???

[clementj3]

GREAT receipes! Delicious and you won't know its healthier because the taste is incredible.

Also there is a cookbook called the mondaythrufriday cookbook, that has easy receipes and goes over variations for each, and there is a lot of unusual things to try,...
Here is an example:
Chicken and pasta

Flour dredge the chicken breasts (helps to pound them flat or use chicken breast tenders) and salt and pepper lightly.

Heat olive oil, 1-2 tbsp, over medium heat in a saute pan.

When hot brown chicken breasts (won't be cooked on inside) and when thoroughly browned, removed to plate to use later in receipe...
add a little chopped garlic to the pan and saute and stir for about 10 seconds only, just till it starts to brown (should sizzle) then quickly add some white wine and or some chicken broth and scrape the pan. You want the browned bits to be in the sauce for flavor..it is called deglazing the pan.
Now here are the variations: once that simmers for a minute you can add one of the following variations, just pick one to use at a time!!!!:

lemon juice and some dried herbs and "reduce the sauce" over heat for 3 minutes, then add back the chicken breasts and cook through about 7 minutes for breasts or 5 minutes for tenders

or add a jar of spaghetti sauce, maybe some olives or mushrooms too if you like, and again, add the chicken and cook through

use masala wine and some italian herbs in the chicken stock and simmer and then add the breasts to cook through

use the white wine and chicken stock and simmer, add chicken and cook through, then add pesto and stir (refridegerator pesto), just a couple of tablespoons of the pesto

use the white wine and chicken stock and simmer, add olive tapenade after you cook the chicken through, stir

use the white wine and chicken stock and simmer and cook the chicken through, then add some light half and half and some fresh herbs and just cook until is is ABOUT to simmer, but dont simmer it, you dont' want to boil the cream
Experiment with the amounts of wine and other add ins, use a little spoon to taste test as you go along, and you'll find the right amount of add in flavors for each type of dish.

If you eat pork, pork scallopini work well in any of these

Turkey breast tenders work great too.

If you are going to use beef, red wines are better for any of the above receipes, use ground beef, flank steak, cubes of beef (simmer longer, use more chicken or vegetable stock too),

Thick fish portions can be poached in wine and water or stock and then fresh herbs added and served over rice, pasta, potatoes sauteed spinach, or kale or greens


Serve all of the above with the pasta of choice.

the masala wine can go with roasted potatos as also the half and half one, or even rice.

This is how I started cooking as a newlywed, I used this receipe all the time and used all the variations...it was like a totally different meal everynight. I really didn't know how to cook when I got married, so Cooking light and the monday through friday cookbook was a lifesaver! I am now considered an Excellent cook by my husband and extended family, but i don't do anything hard at all.

[lucid]

VCP, I like cottage cheese, but not in lasagna (sorry) , so I have never tried it. I don't know how it would turn out. The ricotta does have more body to it, so perhaps the cottage cheese would turn out runny. But maybe you could adjust some other ingredient or the amount of cottage cheese to make it work? I know a lot of people use cottage cheese in lasagna, so there is probably a way to do it and have it turn out well.

Clement, great recipes and tips. Thanks!

[tortoise101]

You should check out any of the books in Cook's Illustrated's Best Recipe series from your library. (Our library system has several copies of all of them.) I just recommended these in another thread, but I promise I don't work for them. They just taught me to cook when I all knew how to make was brownies and spaghetti.

Some of their recipes are more time consuming than others, but the Best 30-minute Recipe book is good for starting off without spending too much time in the kitchen. They test different versions of each recipe over and over until they find what works, and then they explain to you in detail why they decided on those particular ingredients and techniques---which was very helpful for a chronic "experimenter" like me who combined limited cooking skills with "oh, this thing that I already have in the pantry will work just as well, I bet." Good luck!

[love free Bzs]

Try to find recipes for a crockpot that is usually simple and less time consuming and even if you don't have a recipe just try some meat and spices and cream of mushroom or chicken soup or use broth instea of the soup.