This is a —semi— lighthearted rant. DD(13) has really got into cooking and baking over the last year. This is lovely in many ways because as a lone parent, I’m sick to death of being the only one responsible for meals and it’s really nice to have a meal cooked for me now and then. Plus I want to encourage her interests.
Some of what she cooks is pretty good but an awful lot isn’t. She overuses salt, herbs and spices (despite following a recipe), takes hours to make it so we end up eating really late, makes far too much or far too little, overcooks or undercooks stuff and has the heat on too high so the house is smoky and smells acrid for hours. She can be wasteful with ingredients and of course she trashes the kitchen every single time especially if she’s frying something (which is often).
She’s very keen to get my approval, asking me to rate the meals out of ten but more often than not, she decides she doesn’t like what she’s made and I have to eat it for every meal until it’s used up - 8 portion pie week was…interesting 😆 I try to be complimentary where I can and give gentle and constructive feedback but she gets upset by this. It doesn’t help that she rarely wants to make the same thing twice so she doesn’t get to perfect it before she’s looking at new things to make.
Of course I know this is down to inexperience but still, I’m finding it very trying. Can anyone relate? Would especially love to hear stories where they eventually became a fabulous cook! 🧑🍳