could I get some quick cooking help please?

[breakingbrie]

Ok, so I'm no cook... I can prepare meals like hamburger helper and stuff no problem, but I'm not good at making what my husband calls 'real meals' lol. I don't cook very often, because it doesn't turn out well. So I'm trying lately to try new things, and come up with meals dh will like without making him cook it himself.

I'm making this - Rosemary Roasted Chicken with Potatoes

I don't understand this "on foil-lined 15x10x1-inch baking pan sprayed with no stick cooking spray." -Please don't laugh, but am I supposed to spray the baking pan, then line it with foil, or line it with foil then spray it. In my defense, I never cook, or watch anyone else do it, so I'm really clueless here...

[aggiefamily]

Line then spray the foil so the food won't stick to the foil and your clean up is easy!

[breakingbrie]

Thank you so much - you are a lifesaver!! I really am horrible at this, and I get so much crap for it, since everyone in my family has seen my disasters - I'd have never heard the end of it if I'd called someone or asked dh.
Thank you thank you thank you!

[laura mcgee]

if you ever want cooking help and simple recipes PM me and i can help. i learned to cook for myself at 12. i started simple and easy and learned as i went.

[glumirk]

P.S. I ♥ lining my pans with foil! I hate dishes! lol!

[scrapperjade]

Hey don't feel bad Brie!! We all have to start somewhere - and at least you are willing to try! I'm not a great cook either (I've always prefered to bake), so my DH does a lot of the cooking too. But I AM trying - and while my meals aren't gourmet, I am pretty proud of myself when I cook something and it actually tastes good!

[Kjersti]

Let us know how it turns out!

[breakingbrie]

Ok, so it's in the oven now... My fingers are crossed that it turns out and dh is happy. He'll be home soon and he'll be hungry! lol. I will say though, that when I put it in the oven, it already smelled and looked good at least. I'll be back later to let you know how it is... fingers crossed

[breakingbrie]

I'm happy to say it turned out pretty good! lol, I was so excited - dh liked it too. He had told me to get boneless skinless chicken breast instead of the bone in thighs like the recipe said to use and the pieces of chicken I got were cut fairly small. The ended up a little bit dryer than I would have liked, but good anyways - and the potatoes were awesome! lol, I could forget the chicken, and just double the potatoes and have them as a side dish. I'm sure I'll do that sometime, they were sooooo good!

Thanks for the encouragement girls, and Amanda, seriously thanks for saving me the embarassment! lol, I'm gonna have to browse the forum for recipe threads - I know I've seen a bunch... Especially crockpot recipes - I finally bought a crockpot a few weeks ago, and the only thing I've made in it is chip dip

[sprauncey1]

Originally Posted by breakingbrie

I'm happy to say it turned out pretty good! lol, I was so excited - dh liked it too. He had told me to get boneless skinless chicken breast instead of the bone in thighs like the recipe said to use and the pieces of chicken I got were cut fairly small. The ended up a little bit dryer than I would have liked, but good anyways - and the potatoes were awesome! lol, I could forget the chicken, and just double the potatoes and have them as a side dish. I'm sure I'll do that sometime, they were sooooo good!

Thanks for the encouragement girls, and Amanda, seriously thanks for saving me the embarassment! lol, I'm gonna have to browse the forum for recipe threads - I know I've seen a bunch... Especially crockpot recipes - I finally bought a crockpot a few weeks ago, and the only thing I've made in it is chip dip

Yay, glad it worked out! And yep boneless is easier/quicker to cook than bone-in but it does dry out faster and have less flavor. It is always a struggle with me when a recipe calls for bone in to chose which route I want to go (laziness usually wins out over flavor)! And I hear ya about just eating the side...I am a carb junkie if they are good. That is usually what I end up eating the most of over the holidays not the cookies!

[Sharon Kay]

Originally Posted by breakingbrie

I'm happy to say it turned out pretty good! lol, I was so excited - dh liked it too. He had told me to get boneless skinless chicken breast instead of the bone in thighs like the recipe said to use and the pieces of chicken I got were cut fairly small. The ended up a little bit dryer than I would have liked, but good anyways - and the potatoes were awesome! lol, I could forget the chicken, and just double the potatoes and have them as a side dish. I'm sure I'll do that sometime, they were sooooo good!

Thanks for the encouragement girls, and Amanda, seriously thanks for saving me the embarassment! lol, I'm gonna have to browse the forum for recipe threads - I know I've seen a bunch... Especially crockpot recipes - I finally bought a crockpot a few weeks ago, and the only thing I've made in it is chip dip

Well how about either checking past posts on crockpot recipes (seems like there was one here awhile back) or starting a new one. Sonja posted an awesome Cherry Porkchop recipe that is made in the crockpot awhile back ... my husband was impressed! I wasn't sure how it would taste (although I love cherries) ... but it was awesome!

https://www.sweetshoppecommunity.com...403#post463403

There are some other recipes you might check out too! I need to go back through them all ... I bought a bunch of pork and froze it again.

I'm NOT a fancy cook and I have ultra picky kids ... and that is an understatement!

[tuneskids]

lol thanks for the reminder Sharon, I haven't made that in ages! hehehee The kids keep asking for it too! Guess I better add it to the calender for this month's meal plan.

[Darcy Baldwin]

Originally Posted by breakingbrie

I'm happy to say it turned out pretty good! lol, I was so excited - dh liked it too. He had told me to get boneless skinless chicken breast instead of the bone in thighs like the recipe said to use and the pieces of chicken I got were cut fairly small. The ended up a little bit dryer than I would have liked, but good anyways - and the potatoes were awesome! lol, I could forget the chicken, and just double the potatoes and have them as a side dish. I'm sure I'll do that sometime, they were sooooo good!

Oh - man - I prefer thighs to breasts because breasts have almost no flavor anymore..

Something I do is keep a list in the front of my recipe box of meals that I know we love (helps with menu planning, too). That way, you can have some go-to meals and sides that you can cook over and over again, get some confidence in your skills, and have some things to add to other meals to expand your selection of 'real meals' for your hubby!

[Stacey42]

Swapping boneless breasts for bone in thighs means you need to decrease your cooking time or they will dry out. Thighs are juicier and bone in things take longer to cook. Depending on the original cook time you could cut it almost in half, boneless breasts whole can cook in 15 minutes