11 Plus Exams Forum

My eldest is just about to start secondary, and I have the aim that she will be able to cook at least a dozen ‘basic’ meals completely from scratch by the time she goes to uni. (I remember myself being unable to do much more than boil an egg, and one memorable attempt to create a pasta sauce by simply tipping a tin of baked beans onto my cooked spaghetti – and yes it tasted just as disgusting as it sounds!)

So, anyway, I plan to teach my DD one or two dishes a year throughout secondary so that she ends up with better culinary skills than I had at 18.

Below is my draft list to which I request additions. (If anyone wants my recipes for any of these dishes please ask):

1. Mince and potatoes/shepherd’s pie
2. Spag bol (mince + tomato sauce)
3. Curry (mince + curry sauce)
4. Chilli (mince + chilli + kidney beans)
5. Slow cooker stew
6. Pizza (1 kg flour- make into dough – split in 4 and freeze – make 4 pizzas from each piece of dough)
7. Pancakes
8. Soup from soup bones
9. Baked potatoes
10. Burgers (1/3 porridge + ½ jar chutney + raw onion)
11. Chicken with honey and lemon
12. Roast (leg of lamb + roast potatoes)
13. Spare ribs

Namajo

What a good idea Namajo! How about beans on wholemeal toast!

Rob recommended some cook books by Sam Stern. I will be getting some for my son.

I wrote a looong recipe book for my (now 20 yo) son. He mostly lives on jkt potatoes, pasta, beans, bread, eggs (fried and scrambled), apples and raw carrots. In spite of being a pretty good cook.

Tuna pasta bake - once the basic white sauce has been mastered there are endless variations/ additions possible

I was going to say that one.

Cooking is such an essential skill. I was shocked when I started uni in a shared house of 7 people as the only one who could cook. Still it worked out very well as my grant was very slow in arriving so I did deals where someone else bought the raw ingredients with enough for me too and I did the cooking. Everyone else seemed to be living on Findus crispy pancakes

Rob recommended some cook books by Sam Stern. I will be getting some for my son.

Fran, I feel I should ‘fess up here Sam Stern was recommended to me by Amber, and seconded by my nephew, who’s used them a lot at university.

Rob Clark wrote:

Rob recommended some cook books by Sam Stern. I will be getting some for my son.

Fran, I feel I should ‘fess up here Sam Stern was recommended to me by Amber, and seconded by my nephew, who’s used them a lot at university.

Ah, thank you...I don't have many uses in life, but being able to recommend the boy to others is one of them..in fact his lamb korma is bubbling away in my slow cooker as I type this. Wicked.

Second the one about learning to make a white sauce from a roux - taught all mine when they were tiny and they still fall back on that now - with cheese for macaroni cheese or tuna for pasta bake and with herbs for hiding the taste of fish.

While the lamb korma to which Amber refers is absolutely delicious, I can’t see too many university students being prepared to plan far enough in advance to leave it bubbling away in a slow cooker for hours…

DD (13), however, has already realised she can supplement her pocket money by baking cakes and making biscuits for the boys at school. Negotiations as to what cut her mother and I should receive for providing the raw ingredients are currently ongoing

BIL did that when he was at school - got his mother to make sandwiches and he sold them on to his mates. She did not, foolishly imho, take a cut. He is now extraordinarily wealthy and DH reckons this was the first sign of his entrepreneurial streak.

Just in case any of my kids is reading this: no.

We've got a really good book called "Cooking in a Bedsitter" by Katharine Whitehorn which we were planning to give DD to take away with her - don't know if it's still in print but DH took it to university with him and swears by it. I know student ********* today have all mod cons, but the book focuses on basic techniques and recipes you can cook over just one ring - it's surprising how much you can do!

(OT - Just had a rummage for it but can't find it ... but while looking on our cookery book shelf realized that it reflects the story of our life, from aforementioned student cookery book, to dinner parties, to Annabel Karmel recipes for babies and toddlers, cooking with kids, party cakes, camping and barbecues, and back to student cookery books again... )