Cooking Lessons LOCKED

Okay so NEW face thing TOTALLY Vanessa's doing Truffle oil LuvsIt!

SUCCES! I have conquered my VERY 1st ever home fries YAY http://plixi.com/p/82663536 they're aren't quite a midnight snack just a GOOD snack :o)

You're off to a great start with the Wufstof knives! They're the best. I've got 2 chef knives (7" and 9") and a paring knife. Those are the basics.

I also don't think I could live without a good dutch oven and a great saute pan. Le Crueset is the best enameled cast iron dutch oven (6-8 quart size is good for stews/soups/roasts for 2 people). Use that for making soups, stews, and roasting meat. It conducts heat better than anything and you can use it on the stove top or in the oven, or when you start braising meat, from the stove top to the oven directly. I think All Clad make the best saute pans - I have 2 unfinished (not non-stick) and 1 non stick pan. You'll want a small one (8") for easy chicken or veggies, a medium one (10") for making chicken with sauce, and a large one (12-14") for making pasta sauces and then adding the pasta to the sauce. The largest one should have high sides for this. To me, other gadgets make your life easier, but until you know what you like to cook, don't waste your money on them just yet. You'll develop a style, then say "Oh, this would be so much easier with a gadget!", then you'll get it. Everyone's preference therein is different.

As far as recipes, just start with your favorites and master those, then branch out into different ingredients. If you see amazing eggplant at the store one week, get a few and try different ways to cook it. Or try just one spice for a few meals - get some fresh rosemary and play with the way it can flavor veggies, chicken, meat and fish when combined with other flavors.

I think the most important concept is deglazing a pan and making a good pan sauce. (In a non-stick skillet - always!) So flavor your meat, saute it in your pan with olive oil, butter or a combo of both, until it's brown on both sides and there's brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Take the meat out, and add wine, lemon juice, chicken stock, beef stock, brandy, whatever you want, to the hot pan, scraping the bits off the bottom and letting it simmer until you have a sauce. I use this browning and deglazing for everything - even soups. It's the ultimate way to get flavor into meat or fish.

You can use this concept for the chicken saltimboca you want to make - pound your chicken thin with a mallet (or a rolling pin). Season it on both sides with salt & pepper and saute it in olive oil, as above, for only about a minute on each side at high heat, until you have some nice browning on the chicken and in your pan. Remove the chicken, let it cool for a minute, then put a piece of fresh sage, proscuitto, and your favorite cheese in the center, roll it up and pin it closed with toothpicks. Turn your pan back on, add a little butter, add the rolled chicken back, then add about a cup of white wine, scraping up the bits on the pan. Rotate the chicken in the sauce until it's cooked all the way, being careful of the toothpicks. I also like to add a little lemon juice, but that's not traditional. Add more wine if you need to cook the chicken all the way, but the chicken should be pretty thin so as to cook quickly. You could also use bacon or pancetta instead of proscuitto; that's your call. Have fun with it!

The first complete meal I made (when I got married) was Chicken Parmagiana. Everyone loves it and it's super easy. I use the thin cut chicken breast (Cuz I don't like those HUGE slabs of meat). Dip raw chicken in one beaten egg, and then in italian breadcrumbs. Pan fry in a few tablespoons of olive oil, until cooked through. Transfer to a baking dish. (That you have put a little tomato sauce in the bottom of)

Top chicken with tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. Serve with a little fresh grated parm. (If you want to make your own sauce it's very easy, if not, use a good brand like Classico or Bertolli)

I serve this meal with spaghetti.
And a tomato & mozzarella sald. Which is just halved grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella a little basil, a tsp of olive oil, salt & pepper to taste.

Add a glass of red wine & you've got yourself a great Italian meal!

I really love a good pair of kitchen shears. If you have a lot of cutting to do it makes it much easier. (For like, kebobs and stuff)

Fresh herbs. They make so much of a difference over the dried herbs. I suggest a little potted indoor window box. Basics: Italian flat leaf parsley, basil, oregano. (And for me cilantro, cuz I make mexican a lot)

A small hand grater for garlic. (I use garlic A LOT, and I don't like garlic presses)

hmmm to me a good cutting board is very important, lol, and good knives

nothing more frustrating IN THE WORLD than trying to cut chicken and it's not cutting OR cutting a tomato and it doesn't cut right, really the knives have to be good

ummmmmmm i'm trying to think of quick recipes.. it's weird i never really follow recipes i just kinda GO and add stuff to taste

hmm wanna come over and cook together lol that would be fun especially with my non-recipe-ness