Three days after I graduated high school, I moved in with my then
boyfriend (now husband). We spent the summer working and living in his
aunt's house. That fall, I moved to the dorms, and I really never had to make
"meals." I was never taught basic cooking skills, never took a foods
class or watched the Food Network. My mother, ironically, gave me my
first cook book for Christmas after I moved out, but I didn't
even know what half of the ingredients were. I grew up in home where
both parents worked full time jobs, and dinner was usually a Hamburger
Helper or some variation of a quick meal from a box. I felt in over my
head.
A lot of my stay-at-home time has been spent trying to
teach myself how to cook. Being able to feed my children and husband
healthy, tasty, easy and fast-to-create meals is something that I
believe is a part of my job as mom, something I desperately want to
accomplish. I am thankful for three things when it comes to my
self-taught cooking abilities:
1. My slow cooker!!!
Makes the juiciest meals withe least amount of ingredients and you
don't have to stand over the stove watching the food. The cooker does
the work for you and is very difficult to mess up. (Although I have not
had success with adding frozen meat to the cooker. Someone I know
swears this is fine, but I think it creates a dry meat instead of
juicy.)
2. You Tube cooking tutorials. Thank
you internet! You showed me how to cook chicken and mushrooms, how to
cook fish, how to fry zucchini. Recipes can be hard to follow in
print. I like the visual of a cooking show and the specificity I can
find using the internet and HOW-TO videos.
3. Being a teaching aide in a high school cooking class. I supported three students in the beginners class, and I found that I was learning more than the students.
The
following recipe is the first one I really mastered after moving out,
the first I truly know by heart because I have made it so many times.
Adapted from my mother-in-law...
MANICOTTI
7 manicotti noodles (pkg comes with 14)
1/2-3/4 LB hamburger and/or italian sausage (I really eyeball the meat amount because
1 LB meat is always too much for any of our family meals... use all hamburger or all sausage,
but I like a mixture the most...)
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
14 oz jar pasta sauce (give or take, eyeball it again)
1 1/2 - 2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided
1.
In large pot, start water to boil for the noodles; in a separate
skillet, brown the meat and onion and garlic. Once water is boiling,
add noodles and boil for 7 minutes. Drain the water and, using small
tongs, place noodles on foil to cool but not stick. Noodles may rip,
so be gentle.
Pre Heat Oven for 350 degrees.
2. Drain grease from meat and transfer to large mixing bowl. Add 1 c. cheese and stir until cheese begins to melt.
3.
Fill the bottom of an oven-safe casserole dish with some of the pasta
sauce. Stuff noodles with the meat/cheese mixture and place in dish
until filled. Add more sauce over the top of the noodles. (If there is
any leftover meat, add into sauce before pouring over.) Cover dish
with lid or foil; bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.
4.
Remove dish from oven, uncover. Add remaining cheese over top and bake
additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. (photo doesn't do the
cheese justice... i didn't quite have enough cheese to cover the
pasta... this dish needs cheese so sprinkle freely!)
Dish does well with salad, green beans, homemade garlic cheese bread are all family favorites. ENJOY!
