You Can't Cook

It's always been a task to come up with what to blog about. Being a journalist, there were many times in school that we had to develop blogs and maintain them. I could never figure out who or what to write about, let alone imagine have it becoming something either myself or my readers would eventually grow to love. Today, I decided to attempt blogging once again, not for you who may be reading this, but to keep my mind busy when I'm not off hunting stories for the next issue of the paper.

This afternoon I woke to the voice of one of my sisters who reminded me that though I may be sick, I still needed to get up and couldn't sleep the day away. This same voice, who would later be the encouragement I needed to start this blog. I made my way to my family room to join her and my mother in a relaxing afternoon breakfast of soup and tea. If I knew how to make anything else, I would. The tea as usual was delicious, but the soup was a day old and the added chicken broth would have been better alone. It wasn't the food or the drink that interested me most though, it was the show we were watching.

The show, Come Dine With Me, is about four people who each have a task of creating a full meal and a night of entertainment. If you've never seen the show before and I hadn't, I was a little surprised to see how far some of these people were going to impress their guests. I'd only caught the end of the show, but the last contestant was going all out. He started the evening with drinks, followed by homemade soup. Then he introduced the main course, followed shortly by dessert and then an extravagant fireworks show to finish the night. The other contestants loved his food, though if it were up to me, just the fireworks alone would have done the trick. To wrap this up quickly, the winner of the four would win 1000 pounds, or just over $1500 Canadian.

It was here that I opened my mouth to make a comment that would later inspire this very blog itself. While, I do not remember word for word what it is I said, I do remember what my sister said. Very bluntly and loudly, she looked at me and said, "YOU CAN'T COOK." She knew the facts, I'll give her that, but to call me on it so early in my day just seemed so unfair and rude. Here I was chasing a dream to be a famous chef on a television show and she's crushing it with the truth. So, I let it sit. I let it float around me like it always did. I'd offer to make dinner and I'd immediately becoming the joke of the house.

I can't cook anything good, I'm not saying I can't, but I can make some things. The last thing I made was "Yoda Stew" or "Rootleaf Stew" which is the green mush Luke Skywalker and Yoda are seen eating in Star Wars Episode 5: Empire Strikes Back. It didn't turn out great, but it wasn't terrible. If I had pictures, I probably wouldn't post them as it didn't look that tasty. Before that my cooking ability went as far as making stew and adding beer for flavoring. I hope you're getting the picture. I am a terrible chef and I need an upgrade. I Can't Cook. I guess you could call me a Slow Cooker. The Slow Cooker.

I'm a late bloomer when it comes to cooking, but I'm ready to make a change. My longtime friend came over a few weeks ago and my parents laughed at the idea of me making him breakfast. I could have done it, add some milk to some cereal, put some bread in the toaster, ta-dah, breakfast is served. Unfortunately my friend had bigger thoughts of scrambled eggs with bacon and waffles. I wish I could make that. I'm hoping that in time, I will be able to make that.

Now that you know how this blog came to be, let me explain it's purpose. First off, I need a reason to write and I need to write about something that I have no experience in. Cooking is my challenge. Secondly I aim to not only teach myself new dishes each week, but teach you, my readers some new meals that you can make for your friends and loved ones. Finally I aim to eventually be able to sit down and watch an episode of anything on the Food Network, turn to my sister and say "I CAN COOK THAT." Not out of spite, but as a way of overcoming the challenge she laid upon me.

Without dragging this on for any longer than I already have, I hope you will visit my blog and follow my cooking mishaps and victories for weeks to come. I hope you can take something from it and add input to make it better.

Until then, take care and happy cooking,
 
Chef101