"But, I don't know how to cook." Yeah, I know the feeling. At one point neither did I. In fact there was a time in my life that aside from scrambled eggs, if it wasn't already pre-prepared it just wasn't for dinner. At one point for me, the kitchen was a pretty intimating place. Now days I find myself in the kitchen often and I can honestly tell you that it is my happy place. I find so much peace and joy in my kitchen! I love preparing healthy, delicious and tasty snacks and meals for me and my family. But how did I get here? How did I gain the confidence to just get in the kitchen, follow my taste buds and get cookin? I would like to tell you that one day something clicked and I just went for it but of course it was a little more complex than that. Here is how I let go of my fear of the kitchen and here is how I discovered my love for cooking and baking:
I brainstormed and came up with a list of all of my favorite types of foods.
I bought several of those ingredients and I purchased main staples in bulk.
I invested in a spice rack.
I invested in cute dish wear that got me excited to cook and bake (Give me allll the Pioneer Woman kitchen apparel!)
I came up with a fun cooking & baking play list to listen to.
I followed my taste buds and combined together whatever I though sounded good (sometimes this worked in my favor and other times it did not).
I tasted and then seasoned little by little until I was happy with how my dish tasted (I learned quickly that you can easily add flavor and spices but that you can't take them away...so start slow!).
I stopped being afraid of messing up and I chose to just learn from my mistakes.
I celebrated when I perfected a recipe and I looked at each recipe flop as an opportunity to learn.
I set aside a designated time on Sundays to play and experiment in the kitchen and come up with new recipes.
...and that my friends is how I eventually came to love cooking and baking! Try some of these tips out for yourself if you feel that you are in a culinary rut (as I was)! You may just soon discover as I did that the kitchen is your favorite room in the house and that cooking and baking are no longer a chore but instead a delightful pastime that you look forward to!
