Choose a topic

For this entry, I chose to write on the first topic, which is an authority list. Of course, I don’t profess to be an “authority” in anything, but I do have enough knowledge to be able to talk about a few subjects. Here is my list: Cooking, family history (genealogy), medical transcription, reading and dancing. As I sat and thought about my list, the one that stood out the most was cooking. I am, in no way, qualified to be an authority on this, and could definitely not make it as a chef, but it is something that I enjoy doing. I even belong to a cooking club. I love cooking. I started cooking when I was about 10 years old. The first dish that I made was boxed macaroni and cheese. My mom taught me how to read a recipe and I have been cooking ever since. The second dish I ever made was grilled cheese sandwiches. To this day, my brother says that I make the best grilled cheese and I have learned to make them even better. There are three secrets to a good grilled cheese sandwich. The first secret to a good grilled cheese sandwich is this: The butter has to be evenly spread on the entire piece of bread, not just slapped on. The second secret to a good grilled cheese sandwich is the pan. The pan has to be hot enough to actually cook the bread. Even better is if you have a griddle, since that seems to cook it a little more evenly. You also need to have a nonstick pan because even with the butter, the bread will still stick to the pan. The third secret to a good sandwich is to watch the sandwich while it is cooking, making sure not to overcook it. One thing I think I have improved on in regards to the sandwich is adding different kinds of cheese. My kids like just the traditional American cheese in their sandwich. For my husband and myself, we like the American cheese along with a slice of Colby Jack cheese, it just makes it that much cheesier. Of course, this is all dependent on taste. I have also made it with Muenster cheese, which is just as good if not better.
The thing that I like about cooking is that you don’t have to be a professional or perfect at it to enjoy it. I think I am fairly good at cooking and can pretty much follow any recipe you give me. I even tried a new recipe for Valentine’s Day that my husband and I just absolutely loved. (If you want the recipe, let me know and I’ll send it to you.) Of course, not all recipes are equal and there are some out there that people have raved about that I found I didn’t really care for, but to each his own. Which is why I love cooking, not everyone has the same taste and not everyone cooks the same, but it is something anyone can do if they just put their mind to learning how to cook. There are so many resources available online to help a person learn how to cook and if you know how to cook, you can still learn new techniques to improve your already acquired skills.