Since shopping and cooking for my mother, who is ninety years old, I have improved my cooking skills quite a bit. One of the first things I did was buy some inexpensive measuring pieces. I found small glasses with lines of measurement in teaspoons, tablespoons, ounces, etc. in easy-to-read lines around the glasses, which are no more than three inches high. This more accurate measuring of dry and liquid ingredients, has actually improved my cooking.
I bought a book that is like the encyclopedia of spices. Not only did it explain each commonly used spice in detail, but listed compatible spices, or ones that you might use as a replacement if you were out of or forgot to buy the one listed in your recipe. It explained which spices were more often recommended for poultry, fish, pork, and beef.
Also, I try to use as many fruits and or vegetables as I can in our meals. We don’t eat a lot of meat, but we buy something a little extravagant for a holiday feast. Also, I found that cookbooks and cooking magazines, which at one point I thought were a waste of money, now give me wonderful ideas for meals and how to stretch money further when buying food. One of my favorite things to watch on television is the cooking channel.
