The Beginning Kitchen Girl

I have had several readers write to me that they are new to cooking and are needing some pointers. 
Welcome to the kitchen!  I didn’t learn to cook while I was living at home.  I was busy in sports and social life….not in the kitchen.  Then I lived in a sorority and we had a cook.  So, welcome to my reality shock in 2006 when I got my first apartment.  I got married later that year and had a hungry husband to cook for.  Thankfully, my mom and grandma are great cooks and wonderful teachers.  My dad is a fabulous cook but doesn’t use a recipe so he is a bit harder to learn from.  You should hear how he tried to tell me to cook a meal.  I laugh every time!
“It’s a big heaping spoon of this, a dash of that and you just mix it and drizzle butter until it feels right.  You know it is ready when it tastes right”   Ok, dad…..how would you describe “right”?

These are my top 3 “go-to” books

This book has all the basics.  I have the 2007 edition but there are also newer ones out. 
*proper measuring techniques
*kitchen cutlery
*common cutting and chopping techniques
*kitchen tools and gadgets to get started
It has fabulous recipes and all the basic recipes and tips that you would need to know.  This is where I learned how to cook and pot roast, prime rib, and roast a chicken.

Oh Ree Drummond.  This woman has it going for her.  She knows how to cook comfort food and cook for a crowd.  Her pictures make cooking step by step easy

And this little beauty.  This is my favorite.  It is a binder with all sorts of food labels and the like “modge podged” all over it.  It is filled with hand written family and friend recipes.  I got it as a wedding gift and I hope my girls fight over it when they are grown.