This post is part of a series called Cooking 101, which introduces the basics of cooking. The series follows the book Culinary Fundamentals, with supplements from The Professional Chef by the Culinary Institute of America. Check out the previous posts here.
Unit 14: Stocks
Part 1: Chicken Stock
Stocks are important bases for countless dishes [...]

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I made these beans a couple weeks ago for my burritos and was surprised how good they were on their own. They would make a pretty good meal with some rice. Because I was making them for burritos, I halved the recipe.  This was also my first time cooking dried black beans.
I had [...]

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Warning: This salsa does not go well with chips.  It is better served as a sauce.
I’ll admit - I’ve always eaten jarred, store-brand plain salsa. It’s cheap and usually satisfies that salsa craving. One of my first experiences with really good salsa came last year, when my family was given two jars of [...]

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Last weekend my girlfriend brought back two pieces of pumpkin pie from home, so Tuesday night we feasted.  Of course we needed whipped cream, and seeing as I’d never made it before, we walked to the nearby IGA and picked up a half pint of heavy whipping cream.
First, let me just say that cream is [...]

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This creamy pumpkin soup recipe is supposed to be easy, and for most of you, it will be. It’s actually a very tasty soup - much better than the list of ingredients makes it appear. My struggle simply came in getting the pumpkin open - it had a rock hard shell around the [...]

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This is an easy recipe that’s great for using up any leftover vegetables or meats at the end of a week. You may notice that it’s quite similar to the lo mein and fried rice recipes I posted, and that’s because it’s from the same book (Pam Anderson’s How to Cook Without a Book). [...]

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