Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes I
put in).

I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
well. ;-)

Dimitri

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. com...
: Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what
was the first
: thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
:
: I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at
about 11 (
: after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from
the tomatoes I
: put in).
:
: I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old
cast iron pan
: swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned
out very
: well. ;-)
:
: Dimitri
:
: =============

Hmmm. Let's see...

Ages 3-5 I helped Mama make cookies, lots of brownies, and
Jell-O. She always poured the hot water but I can remember being
nervous stirring it because I was afraid of splashing the hot
water...

At age 8 or 9 I made a loaf of French Bread.


I've only had 2 things turn out... ummm... bad (!). Age 12 -
brownies - forgot to add the sugar. Ewwwwwwwww. Nasty.

Age 14 - Oatmeal Cookies - no butter - so I used oil. The
cookies tasted okay but were very, very thin and were spread out.
A 6 inch cookie that was 1/8 th of an inch thick.

Maybe after this thread is over - we should try a "What has been
your favorite success?".

--
Cyndi
<Remove a "b" to reply>

Dimitri wrote:
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
> first thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
(snippage)
> Dimitri

Rice, when I lived in Bangkok, at age 9. Used to make it for breakfast. A
little butter, salt & pepper. No sugar like they tend to do here in the
Southern U.S. Sometimes I still like rice for breakfast.

Jill

Dimitri wrote:
>
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri

When I was about 8 I cooked Saturday lunch for my Dad.
I had a children's cookbook that had recipes for things
like oatmeal and cinnamon toast and lots of other fairly
simple things. I wanted to make egg salad sandwiches.
They turned out great except for the fact that I mistook
teaspoon for tablespoon and added a tablespoon of salt.
Ewww! As I recall my dad bravely swallowed every bite.

Now, from a very young age my sister and I had been allowed
to "assist" my mother with cooking and she taught us stuff
as we went along. But the egg salad sandwiches were my
first solo, unsupervised cooking experience.

My second was when I was about 12. I made spaghetti for
the family for dinner. It turned out great. Other than
those two experiences going solo I can't recall any others.
But I helped my mom cook all the times. I suppose I must
have occasionally made my own lunch or something during the
intervening years but I just don't recall.

Kate
--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

Dimitri > asked in message
. com...
> [..] what was the first thing you cooked, and about how old
> were you?
[snip]

Hmmm. Viewing back in time through Rosy-Glass Syndrome but... I always
seemed to be hanging out in the kitchen -- either in the way or doing the
whole Toddler "I wanna help!" -- so by the time I was 6 I felt cocky enough
to attempt eggs and bacon. Boy was that a bad morning. None of the eggs
didn't crack as easily as my dad made it seem, I was picking shell out of
the bowl on every one. I also hit them so hard against the bowl that more
whites ended up on the side and counter than inside the bowl. Bacon, no
matter how thick, /can/ become cinder-like if you don't watch it. And
"darkened" toast (the way both my parent-units preferred to eat it) can
smoke up the entire house within seconds. (Got both parents and Little
Brother out of bed, though.)

The Ranger

On Fri, 05 Mar 2004 16:37:52 GMT, "Dimitri" >
wrote:

>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

I must have 'helped' with cookies because I knew how to crack and
separate an egg by the time I began cooking breakfast for my parents.
10 or 11? I hated *eating* eggs of any sort, but I loved cooking them.
My specialty was something to do with yolks on toast, then covered
with the whipped whites and baked or broiled. On one festive
occasion (opening day of the State Fair, as I recall), I thoughfully
used food coloring to produce blue milk, pink sugar, and green
something else. This was *not* as appreciated as I'd hoped. :-)

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. com...
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes
I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri
>
That would be peanut butter cookies, way back a million years in for home
ec. Would have been fine, but I thought it would be easier to use vegetable
oil, in the same amount as shortening. Can you say 'oil slick'?? They were
the most horrid things in the world. My two brothers ate them anyways. My
mother wasn't much on teaching us to cook, I picked it up as I got older.
Learned how to read a recipe and then how to put things together w/out a
recipe.

When I was in my early 20s I got a job cooking in a La Jolla restaurant.
Didn't have any experience, in fact I was applying for a waitress position.
The owner asked me if I could follow a recipe, I said yes, and she hired me
to cook, hire and fire staff, plan the menu and keep the place stocked. 12
hour days, 6 days a week, very hard work. I totally enjoyed it! Learned
alot from the chef that was leaving and did okay. Then, I got fired for
quiches that were burnt on my day off. That was enough of restaurant work
for me!

I still love to cook though there's not much time.

Suzan

On Fri, 5 Mar 2004, Dimitri wrote:

> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> well. ;-)

I don't know if this counts but I remember making cakes in my sister's
EasyBake(tm) oven when I was 7. If you want stove top cooking then I'd go
with fried Cheerios in butter; I was 8. Don't know why but thought it
would be a good thing at the time. Tasted like popcorn. I was a latch-key
kid. By the time I was 10 I could make soups and sandwiches. My favourite
was tomato soup.

I burnt a lot of things between the ages of 8 and 12. 8^)

--
Send e-mail to: darrell at cs dot toronto dot edu
Don't send e-mail to

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. com...
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
Hmmm... I guess my Christmas morning flambeed PopTarts are too close to the
cinnamon toast family to count as cooking...

As far as *real* cooking goes, I can remember helping my mom a lot in the
kitchen, but the first thing I made independently was meatloaf. My mom
wanted to try a new recipe, and she let me mix it up and put it into the
pan. The meatloaf had Campbell's tomato soup in it, and it came out really
tasty...or at least, I thought it was wonderful, and Mom praised it up and
down. Now I realize that it was probably just ok, but not a culinary
masterpiece,.... but if one of my kids wanted to get their hands goopy in my
place, I'd be pretty effusive, too! I was probably about 11 or 12.

Then there were the "diet" brownies I made as a teenager. I figured if I
decreased the amount of chocolate, sugar and butter, the brownies would have
fewer calories and I could eat the whole pan. But I slashed these
ingredients in half without replacing them, so the brownies were simply
horrid. Wishful thinking!

Chris

> (Darrell Grainger)

>My parents were pretty cool with letting me try stuff on the stove. I'd
>seen my three sister make pretty much every mistake you can think of.
>Learning from their mistakes made it easy for me to get my parent's trust;
>the time I stopped my third sister from throwing water on a grease fire
>because I saw what happened when my first sister did that pretty much
>showed my dad I knew how to cook with gas. Always keep a full jar of
>flour or baking soda around. 8^)

Baking soda is fine for smothering small grease fires but tossing flour on any
fire is extremely dangerous... dincha know there is no smoking and open flame
permitted at flour mills... the dust can ignite and explode. Best thing to do
about a grease fire in a pan is to plop the lid on... for grease fires in ovens
(very likely when baking bacon) is to quickly shut the oven door and turn off
the oven... copious quantities of hot grease in an oven can ignite quite
violently when the oven door is opened and a rush of cold oxygen rich air
rushes in... never ever do bacon in a closed oven... if you're so pinheaded
that your insist, use the stove's broiler but be sure to leave the door cracked
and never ever leave th ekitchen while broiling... more people than you can
imagine burn down their house from broiling with the oven door closed and
walking away for two minutes to pee.. and we all know what a two minute pee
turns into for a female.


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

My parents put adequate plain meals on the table, usually broiled meats,
salads, good bread from the bakery, frozen vegetables. The food
wasn't bad, and I grew up well-fed considering how fussy I was, but no
one ever took joy in the cooking. The one recipe my mother made that
could be considered from scratch was a tomato- meat sauce for pasta, and
that's the first thing I remember making myself. I might have been in
junior high.


I also remember making cookies. This would have been high school. I
had no one to teach me but also no standards to uphold. No one in my
immediate family made cookies. (One grandmother visited once a year and
made hamantaschen with me and my brother.) I must have liked the idea
of exploring new territory on my own. I used recipes from Joy of
Cooking which was one of 2 cookbooks in the house, a wedding gift to my
parents. I got fancy with decorating the rolled cookies making each
into a little work of art by cutting out different shapes and using
colored sugars and twisting the dough different ways.


I did this only when my parents weren't home. It was my own time to
experiment without comment or criticism. I remember one night in
particular when one of my brother's friends came over before going out
with the guys. He would have been 3 years older and therefore someone
for an impressionable girl to have a crush on. He admired the cookies.
I was proud. Only later did I discover that I'd forgotten to grease
the cookie sheet thus making each masterpiece inedibly stuck to the pan.
They had to be soaked off.


--Lia

>
>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
>I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
>after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes I
>put in).
>
>I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
>swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
>well. ;-)
>
>Dimitri

I remember helping Mom in the kitchen about 8 or 9. At 10 and 11, my sister
and I were allowed to try baking and other stuff by ourselves. My poor Father
was the real
guinea pig. He never complained about the overseasoned or other mistakes.
Every day I thank my Mother for letting us try anything we wanted at a very
young age. We were making yeast rolls, cakes, pies and lots of other goodies.
The Joy of Cooking was one only a few cookbooks my Mother had.

I started teaching my kids as soon as they showed an interest. If either one
was too slow to show an interest, I insisted they learned the basics so they
would never starve to death. They all survived.

Florence

I clearly remember the appreciative thank-yous, but also the giggles
when I was about three and served my parents breakfast in bed. Being
that young, of course I was not allowed to use the stove, so they each
got a fresh picked apricot, a small bowl of Cheerios (with sugar and
milk), and a small Gerkins pickle as their "apee-tiser." Bless my
daddy! With first a conspiritorial whisper to me, he quickly distracted
her, then snatched the pickle away from momma's serving so that just he
and I could eat them together.

Picky ~JA~

I honestly can not remember the first thing I ever cooked. I do have an memory
of standing on a chair at the stove stirring a pot of soup while my dad stood
next to me chopping up ingredients and throwing them in. I think I was about 4
or 5? I know I was able to cook canned soup and macaroni and cheese by the time
I was 7. My mom owned a Dairy Queen and I grew up in the back of the place. I
was flipping hamburgers and making chili dogs when I was 9. I was able to cook
entire meals for my family of seven by the time I was 10. With both my parents
working and my only sister having NO talent or desire to cook, I was the
regular cook in the house all through my teens. Even now, I make all the
holiday meals. It's just always been what I do.

Sandra

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. com...
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>

I suppose from the time I was about 1, I was in the kitchen "helping" to
some extent. The first item I ever remember making by myself was potato
pancakes, from a mix, in the microwave on the browning grill. I was in 1st
grade, and my parents were occupied at the moment with other things. I
think my dad was out at the barn getting ready to milk and mom was just
outside, doing some yard work. They turned out ok, as best as I can
remember.

My first real meal that I made by myself was spaghetti and green beans when
I was 10.

Dimitri wrote:
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
> first thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

I remember my first effort as the family ribbed me about it and I was very
antsy

I made a beef stew with orange dumplings, at about age 12/13 ?
I followed the recipe, and towards the end, it said

1 tbs flour
salt
pepper

Well, I thought about it a bit, and eventually decided that the recipe must
mean 1tbs of each.
Apparently the stew was really hot & peppery, but I thought it tasted fine
*harumph*

Stupid, ambiguous recipe

My brother brought home a trout,,,and asked if I would cook it,,,,,I cut off
the head,,washed it,,,,wrapped it in foil,,,baked it in the over for an
hour....then proudly placed it on the table......my Mom walked in,,,,,,took
a slice,,,,and asked why didn't I clean it 1st? forgot to gut
it.........Hey,,,,I was only 18...
That's why I'm here!
Cheers.
"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. com...
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes
I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri
>
>

Dimitri wrote in message ...
>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
>I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
>after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes
I
>put in).
>
>I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
>swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
>well. ;-)

when i was about 9 or so i made peanut butter cookies, mistaking teaspoons
of baking soda for cups. when you bit into them, you foamed at the mouth
i wasn't allowed in the kitchen for a while after that.

--
Saerah

TANSTAAFL

"Strange women lying in ponds distributing
swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive
power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some
farcical aquatic ceremony."

"Saerah" > wrote in message
...
:
: Dimitri wrote in message ...
: >Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what
was the first
: >thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
: >
: >I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at
about 11 (
: >after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from
the tomatoes
: I
: >put in).
: >
: >I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old
cast iron pan
: >swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned
out very
: >well. ;-)
:
: when i was about 9 or so i made peanut butter cookies,
mistaking teaspoons
: of baking soda for cups. when you bit into them, you foamed at
the mouth
: i wasn't allowed in the kitchen for a while after that.
:
: --
: Saerah
:===============

Awwwwwwwww! That's cute. <giggle>

Cyndi
<Remove a "b" to reply>

In article >, says...
>
> Dimitri wrote in message ...
> >Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> >thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
> >
> >I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> >after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes
> I
> >put in).
> >
> >I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> >swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> >well. ;-)
>
> when i was about 9 or so i made peanut butter cookies, mistaking teaspoons
> of baking soda for cups. when you bit into them, you foamed at the mouth
> i wasn't allowed in the kitchen for a while after that.

Oh that reminds me of someone in this house. Wasn't me by the way.

It was supposed to be cake but it was so damned heavy that one bite
would fill you up.

Next time it was so light it broke apart.

Then of course there are the famous Sahara Dessert cookies. Those were
interesting so long as you had a half gallon of milk handy for 3 or 4
cookies.

But my first real cooking experience happened when I was in my early
20's. Spaghetti sauce... it was a little bit acidy the first couple
times but I've refined it since then and it's pretty damn good now.

lea b wrote:
> Dimitri wrote:
>> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
>> first thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I followed the recipe, and towards the end, it said
>
> 1 tbs flour
> salt
> pepper
>
> Well, I thought about it a bit, and eventually decided that the
> recipe must mean 1tbs of each.
> Apparently the stew was really hot & peppery, but I thought it tasted
> fine *harumph*
>
> Stupid, ambiguous recipe

ROFL! That's too funny! I suppose that's why I write my recipes "salt &
pepper to taste", although, to a 12 year old that could probably mean you
need a lot to make it taste good.

Jill

I was about 7 when I decided to make a pot of Maypo, a sort of cream
of wheat cereal. I read the directions and put in the correct amount
of water and maypo but decided that it was WAY too thin, so I added
more maypo to thicken it up. Then more water when it started to get
REALLY thick, then more maypo. Learned my first lesson about
following directions.

Bob C

"Dimitri" > wrote in message .com>...
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about 11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the tomatoes I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri

Dimitri -

>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

Like many other respondents to this thread I can't recall my *first* cooking
experience exactly. Helping with cookies, etc, yes, grilled cheese sandwiches
yes, but the first real meal I remember cooking was this:

1 can Campbell's condensed tomato soup
1/2 can water
2 eggs
2 slices of toast
1 tsp of "herb mixture" - some Mccormick blend mom had hanging around

In a pan mix the tomato soup and 1/2 can of water and bring to a simmer,
stirring. Add the herb mixture (I think it was "fine herbes" or some such
truck) and give it another stir.

Poach the eggs in tomato base, basting with a spoon. Toast the bread.

Plate the bread, top with the poached eggs and pour the sauce over the eggs.

IIRC I was about 12. I thought it was good and so did my younger brother who
demanded it every time my parents went out for the evening.

I think I got the recipe out of "Boys' Life" magazine, not that I was a Scout
or anything.

Mom wasn't really much of a cook, feeling as she did that food's function began
when it hit the stomach rather than the plate. But some of her comfort food
was quite good.

I also fondly recall family work days, usually a Saturday or a Sunday. Usually
in fall/spring the family unit would tackle yard chores, raking, sweeping,
digging. About 11 a.m. Mom would go start lunch, which invariably consist of
corn soup and sardine sandwiches.

Wolfe Family Workday Menu:

Corn soup:
2 cans cream style corn
2 cans milk

Combine and cook. My brother and I would put slices of cheddar into our bowls
and ladle the soup over it. Stir until you get looong, gooey strings of
cheddar throughout.

Sardine Sandwiches (make your own)
1 tin of large sardines (big oval can, Eatwell brand by preference) in tomato
sauce
sliced bermuda onion
lettuce
sliced dill pickles
sliced radishes
"Good" bread (according to mom): Variety of pumpernickel, rye, schwartzbrot
and Romano's Italian bread (for my brother whose taste in bread lay towards the
softer end of the spectrum).

Good times. The only part of being lactose intolerant I regret is cream soups,
may have to try Lactaid one of these days.

Best,

Marc

MrAoD wrote:

> Dimitri -
>
>
>>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
>

Interesting thread Dimitri.

Let me start by saying that I am, and always have been a "fussy
eater". As George Carlin says, that's a euphanism for "big pain in
the ass!" He's probably accurate too. ;-)

I was about 6 or 7 when my Mother made me over easy eggs, bacon, and
toast for breakfast one morning. I complained that the bacon wasn't
done and that the egg whites were runny around the yolk and wouldn't
eat it. She just calmly said "well then, from now on do it yourself"
and the next morning I did.

--
Steve

Men are from Earth. Women are from Earth. Deal with it.

Steve Calvin wrote:


> Let me start by saying that I am, and always have been a "fussy eater".
> As George Carlin says, that's a euphanism for "big pain in the ass!"
> He's probably accurate too. ;-)


That's it for me too. The one who cooks get to make everything exactly
the way she likes. I buy broccolrabe, not beets, potato chips, not
twinkies. No one ever complains when I bring the picnic lunch.


--Lia

Dimitri wrote:
>
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

I remember my first cooking experience. My mother was in the hospital
having my baby brother and my father was there with her, so I had the
kitchen to myself. I was not permitted to cook, so I wasn't going to
pass that opportunity up!

What to make, brownies from a box, of course! What else would any
self respecting 11 year old make? Well, we lived in an apartment
that had an oven where you had to light the pilot light. I turned
on the gas, waited, then lit a match. WHOOOOOOOOOSHHHH! Nice
little explosion and the smell of burning hair. I was lucky it
wasn't worse.

I don't remember how the brownies turned out.

nancy

Nancy Young > wrote in message
...
> I remember my first cooking experience.
[snip]
> What to make, brownies from a box, of course! What else
> would any self respecting 11 year old make? Well, we
> lived in an apartment that had an oven where you had to
> light the pilot light. I turned on the gas, waited, then lit a
> match. WHOOOOOOOOOSHHHH! Nice little explosion
> and the smell of burning hair. I was lucky it wasn't worse.

ROTFLOL! *THAT* would've been a Kodak Moment®!

> I don't remember how the brownies turned out.

Is that from the shock of the gas explosion or the aftershocks from your
parents' explosions? However did you explain your knew facial and 'doo?

The "A Flame-out Survivor Too" Ranger

The Ranger wrote:
>
> Nancy Young > wrote in message

> > light the pilot light. I turned on the gas, waited, then lit a
> > match. WHOOOOOOOOOSHHHH! Nice little explosion
> > and the smell of burning hair. I was lucky it wasn't worse.
>
> ROTFLOL! *THAT* would've been a Kodak Moment®!
>
> > I don't remember how the brownies turned out.
>
> Is that from the shock of the gas explosion or the aftershocks from your
> parents' explosions? However did you explain your knew facial and 'doo?

Oh, it was from the explosion, I got real shook up. Apparently not
shaken up enough to learn my lesson. When I was maybe 21, I turned
on the gas on a grill, then lit it. Notice no mention of opening
the lid. Let's just say I did not need to open the lid after the
explosion blew it upwards.

nancy (not allowed to have matches)

Nancy Young > sheepishly admitted in message
...
> The Ranger wrote:
> >
> > Nancy Young > wrote in message
>
> > > light the pilot light. I turned on the gas, waited, then lit a
> > > match. WHOOOOOOOOOSHHHH! Nice little explosion
> > > and the smell of burning hair. I was lucky it wasn't worse.
> >
> > ROTFLOL! *THAT* would've been a Kodak Moment®!
> >
> > > I don't remember how the brownies turned out.
> >
> > Is that from the shock of the gas explosion or the aftershocks
> > from your parents' explosions? However did you explain your
> > knew facial and 'doo?
> >
> Oh, it was from the explosion, I got real shook up. Apparently
> not shaken up enough to learn my lesson. When I was maybe 21,
> I turned on the gas on a grill, then lit it. Notice no mention of
> opening the lid. Let's just say I did not need to open the lid after
> the explosion blew it upwards.
>
Yep... My lone flamekiss was with a gas grill, too. The electronic igniter
wasn't providing a heavy-enough spark to pop the gas so I flipped off the
valve to let the vapors dissipate. It was a hot, breezeless day. I
apparently didn't let them dissipate enough before I put a lit match in. I
remember "FWOOM!" and one of Little Brother's less-intelligent associates
doin' a Ted-impression, "Whoa! Dude... <snork> That was totally awesome." As
I turned to glare at the kid, Little Brother asked, "Where are your
eyebrows?"

It was a painful (emotional and physical) Life Experience(tm) that I don't
recommend anyone try. The Gahdz have a cruel sense of humor for those with
blond hair and fair skin foolish enough to play with fire. <G>

The Ranger

I asked to cook when I was 5. Mom said nobody could cook unless they
could read. Taught myself to read. Mom made me prove it by reading the
directions on the Jello package. Made Jello.

When I was 9 I made my first family meal: Venison Swiss Steak, frozen
green beans, baked potatoes & butterscotch pudding (box).

My daughter is 22. Can't boil water. Refuses to learn.

Lynn from Fargo

Nancy Young > wrote in
:

> Oh, it was from the explosion, I got real shook up. Apparently not
> shaken up enough to learn my lesson. When I was maybe 21, I turned
> on the gas on a grill, then lit it. Notice no mention of opening
> the lid. Let's just say I did not need to open the lid after the
> explosion blew it upwards.
>
> nancy (not allowed to have matches)
>
>

When I was 10 (I was a Latch key kid) and home for lunch. I decided on pop
corn, not the sandwiches left for me. Just as I was carrying the hot pot
to the bowl, the phone rang, (mom checking on me). I paniced and put the
pot on a vinly chair, to allow me to run and answer the phone.

--
Once during Prohibition I was forced to live for days on nothing but food
and water.
--------
FIELDS, W. C.

In article >, hahabogus
> wrote:

> When I was 10 (I was a Latch key kid) and home for lunch. I decided
> on pop corn, not the sandwiches left for me. Just as I was carrying
> the hot pot to the bowl, the phone rang, (mom checking on me). I
> paniced and put the pot on a vinly chair, to allow me to run and
> answer the phone.

That's a tough one to cover up. You get thrashed?
--
-Barb, <www.jamlady.eboard.com> updated 3-5-04.
Rec.food.cooking's Preserved Fruit Administrator (I've got
the button to prove it!)
"Always in a jam, never in a stew; sometimes in a pickle."

hahabogus wrote:
> Nancy Young > wrote in
> :
>
>> Oh, it was from the explosion, I got real shook up. >> nancy (not
allowed to have matches)
>>
> When I was 10 (I was a Latch key kid) and home for lunch. I decided
> on pop corn, not the sandwiches left for me. Just as I was carrying
> the hot pot to the bowl, the phone rang, (mom checking on me). I
> paniced and put the pot on a vinly chair, to allow me to run and
> answer the phone.

Never *ever* answer the phone when you're a kid and home alone! Didn't your
mother teach you anything? ;-)

jmcquown wrote:
> lea b wrote:
>>
>> I followed the recipe, and towards the end, it said
>>
>> 1 tbs flour
>> salt
>> pepper
>>
>> Well, I thought about it a bit, and eventually decided that the
>> recipe must mean 1tbs of each.
>> Apparently the stew was really hot & peppery, but I thought it tasted
>> fine *harumph*
>>
>> Stupid, ambiguous recipe
>
> ROFL! That's too funny! I suppose that's why I write my recipes
> "salt & pepper to taste", although, to a 12 year old that could
> probably mean you need a lot to make it taste good.

I've still got the book ( mum gave it to me when she was chucking out stuff
before moving to another country ), and i'm *still* resentful of the
wording - to me, it still seems plausible that the recipe called for a tbs
of each

What's wrong with a "pinch" or "to taste", yes .... *that* I would have
understood ...

On Fri, 05 Mar 2004 16:37:52 GMT, "Dimitri" >
wrote:

>Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the first
>thing you cooked, and about how old were you?

French (excuse the term) toast in boy's cookery in junior high school.

1942...age 12

On Fri, 5 Mar 2004, PENMART01 wrote:

> > (Darrell Grainger)
>
> >My parents were pretty cool with letting me try stuff on the stove. I'd
> >seen my three sister make pretty much every mistake you can think of.
> >Learning from their mistakes made it easy for me to get my parent's trust;
> >the time I stopped my third sister from throwing water on a grease fire
> >because I saw what happened when my first sister did that pretty much
> >showed my dad I knew how to cook with gas. Always keep a full jar of
> >flour or baking soda around. 8^)
>
> Baking soda is fine for smothering small grease fires but tossing flour
> on any fire is extremely dangerous... dincha know there is no smoking
> and open flame permitted at flour mills... the dust can ignite and
> explode. Best thing to do about a grease fire in a pan is to plop the
> lid on...

True to a certain extent. The dust is explosive. If you are goint to use
flour to put out a grease fire you want to be sure there is enough to
completely drown the fire in one shot.

Thinking about it, keep a fire extinguisher around. When I first started
cooking it was rare to find a fire extinguish you could buy for the home.
Today you can buy one for $10. Just make sure it can handle all the
circumstances (A, B and C type fires).

> for grease fires in ovens (very likely when baking bacon) is
> to quickly shut the oven door and turn off the oven... copious
> quantities of hot grease in an oven can ignite quite violently when the
> oven door is opened and a rush of cold oxygen rich air rushes in...
> never ever do bacon in a closed oven... if you're so pinheaded that your
> insist, use the stove's broiler but be sure to leave the door cracked
> and never ever leave th ekitchen while broiling... more people than you
> can imagine burn down their house from broiling with the oven door
> closed and walking away for two minutes to pee..

Good advice for anything involving a flame... candles, fire in the hearth,
broiling, etc.

> and we all know what a two minute pee turns into for a female.

Same thing as a two minute pee for a male?

--
Send e-mail to: darrell at cs dot toronto dot edu
Don't send e-mail to

On Sat, 6 Mar 2004, hahabogus wrote:

> Nancy Young > wrote in
> :
>
> > Oh, it was from the explosion, I got real shook up. Apparently not
> > shaken up enough to learn my lesson. When I was maybe 21, I turned
> > on the gas on a grill, then lit it. Notice no mention of opening
> > the lid. Let's just say I did not need to open the lid after the
> > explosion blew it upwards.
> >
> > nancy (not allowed to have matches)
>
> When I was 10 (I was a Latch key kid) and home for lunch. I decided on pop
> corn, not the sandwiches left for me. Just as I was carrying the hot pot
> to the bowl, the phone rang, (mom checking on me). I paniced and put the
> pot on a vinly chair, to allow me to run and answer the phone.

This reminded me of one Spring when the snow had melted my mother found
one of her pots in the back yard. Turns out someone (no it was not me)
burnt something in the pot and threw it in the snow in the back yard
during the winter.

--
Send e-mail to: darrell at cs dot toronto dot edu
Don't send e-mail to

Dimitri wrote:
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about
11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the
tomatoes I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron
pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out
very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri

Clam pasta, 1950s style... This dish brings back soulful memories.

1 cube butter
chopped garlic
1 small can chopped clams
1/4 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper

Melt butter in a sauce pan. Gently sautee/simmer garlic for 3 or 4
minutes - don't burn. Add the clams juice. Simmer very gently to
reduce. Add the clams and parsley, simmer gently until the clams are
heated through. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve over boiled spaghetti.

Dimitri wrote:
> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
first
> thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>
> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about
11 (
> after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the
tomatoes I
> put in).
>
> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron
pan
> swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out
very
> well. ;-)
>
> Dimitri

Clam pasta, 1950s style... This dish brings back soulful memories.

1 cube butter
chopped garlic
1 small can chopped clams
1/4 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper

Melt butter in a sauce pan. Gently sautee/simmer garlic for 3 or 4
minutes - don't burn. Add the clams juice. Simmer very gently to
reduce. Add the clams and parsley, simmer gently until the clams are
heated through. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve over boiled spaghetti.

On Wed 12 Jan 2005 10:50:26p, roxmarie tittered and giggled, and giggled
and tittered, and finally blurted out...

>
> Dimitri wrote:
>> Other than cinnamon toast and cold cereal or a sandwich what was the
>> first thing you cooked, and about how old were you?
>>
>> I distinctly trying my hand at scrambled eggs Mexican style at about
>> 11 ( after they cooked I needed to drain off the extra liquid from the
>> tomatoes I put in).
>>
>> I second attempt was a pineapple upside-down cake in an old cast iron
>> pan swerved with whipped cream about 3 yeas later. That one turned out
>> very well. ;-)
>>
>> Dimitri
>
> Clam pasta, 1950s style... This dish brings back soulful memories.
>
> 1 cube butter
> chopped garlic
> 1 small can chopped clams
> 1/4 cup chopped parsley
> salt and pepper
>
> Melt butter in a sauce pan. Gently sautee/simmer garlic for 3 or 4
> minutes - don't burn. Add the clams juice. Simmer very gently to
> reduce. Add the clams and parsley, simmer gently until the clams are
> heated through. Season with salt and pepper.
> Serve over boiled spaghetti.

Mom had debilitating migraines when I was very young. She taught me how to
scramble eggs and make toast, and how to open a can of soup and heat it
when I was about five, in case she was unable to make something for me.

Following a recipe? I remember making Apple Snow from The Good
Housekeeping Cookbook when I was 9.

Wayne