For my 3 pound project I chose cooking. The reason why I chose cooking was because I will be heading off to college very soon and I wanted to familiarize myself with some starter dishes and meals that my family and I will personally like. I also wanted to learn how to cook actual meals instead of eating out all the time so I can be a bit healthier. The meals that I learned how to cook over this quarter were Pork Sausage Rigatoni in a Creamy Sauce, Tex Mex Pork and Pepper Enchiladas, Szechuan Chicken and Pineapple Stir-fry, Chicken Sausage Cavatappi Bolognese with Zucchini and Parmesan, and Firecracker Meatballs.
By doing this project, I was able to learn more about not only my favorite meals, but my family’s as well as the skills, knowledge, and planning that goes into them. Cooking requires a lot of focus for the portion of the recipe where you need to make sure you get the right amounts established to pour into your bowl or pan. After that, it is mainly waiting, mixing, or assembling. Normally, during those times I would bring my speaker down and play music to make it more fun and to make the time go by faster.
When I first started the three pound project, I split the process into two days a week so it would be convenient for myself to gather all the supplies needed on day 1 and then cook on day 2. Once I set my schedule and meals for each week, my process ran very smoothly and efficiently. However, for the second time around I chose to do it all in one blog. At first, splitting it up made it a lot easier for me to remember the recipes, supplies used, and what pans and so forth I needed, but as I got more accustomed to the cooking life I didn’t need as many reminders.
As far as challenges with cooking, I started out not knowing a single thing besides how to make cereal and some sandwiches. I was never really involved in the kitchen prior to the project besides when I would help set up the table and clean up. Thankfully, my mom and dad are both good at cooking and they were able to show me where everything I needed was, as well as help me get a start on some of the meals. Towards the end, I became a pro and knew how to make a meal without any help.
This project really opened my eyes as to how much thought and effort my mom and dad put for us for each meal we eat together as a family. When I cooked each meal, I watched as my family members would take a bite and I wanted to see if their reactions were good or bad. Now I know that as a cook it takes a lot of courage to make a dish and not know if someone is going to truly like it or not. In my family we used to always joke with my mom that she was a bad cook, but now I am not going to do that anymore because I bet my food doesn’t taste nearly as good as hers and as I said, I now know that it takes a lot to make food and share it with others. Being told your food doesn’t taste good will hurt because you put all of that time, ingredients, and effort into it and you were excited to hand it out and see the reactions. It has not happened to me, but I am sure it will.
I am very proud that I took on cooking for my three pound project because I not only learned how to cook some of our favorite meals, but I was also able to bond with my parents more. It was a very nice experience and I still have a lot more to learn!
Healthy Cooking 