Some Pointers

Cooking doesn't have to be hard. It can be as easy or as hard as you make it. Even when looking at recipes with ingredients that you know only the rich and famous can truly afford, when you are on a shoe string budget, shouldn't scare you away from making something truly delicious.

I have been cooking for so many years that I sometimes forget what it is like when you are just starting out. The information, ingredients, amounts and getting lost in the recipe can be daunting at first. Don't let it put you off! Take a deep breath, and -

IMPROVISE!

That is the secret to a truly great cook. That is what I do all the time. If a recipe calls for something that I don't have, I will either find something to replace it, or omit it completely. No matter how it turns out, I will keep tweaking it with different things until I have something that I can be truly proud to say that I have made.

To this day, even though I may make the exact same meal, each time that I make it, it will turn out different than the time before. Sometimes I forget exactly what I used before; or I will forget to put something in, or I will add something extra.

All right. Say, for example, as in one of the recipes I have posted here, that the recipe calls for Morel mushrooms. Now, I am not quite sure what a Morel mushroom is or tastes like, being a basic kind of gal. So, I will substitute fresh white mushrooms from the produce section of my local supermarket. The recipe calls for wine - it has a substitute listed, so I will either use that, or completely omit the wine. The recipe calls for heavy cream and egg yolks; I am lactose intolerant, not to mention Jewish and the whole no-meat-and-milk thing - so will omit that completely (have to eliminate the egg yolks because of eliminating the heavy cream).

You get the picture! Besides, if all else fails, and what you've made is really bad (it's happened to me a few times), you can always either order out; or, if financially strapped (like me) it's time for a FEND FOR YOURSELF night. My kids used to love those nights when I was just to tired to cook; they usually had a bowl of cereal for dinner (they thought it was a treat!). Actually, the "bowl" turned into 2 or 3 by the time they were done, but that was OK. Or, they'd fix a sandwich or have leftovers - whatever they could find! That's the beauty of the Fend For Yourself nights!