Garlic Bread

Garlic Bread is a great side for a dish such as spaghetti, or lasagna. But it is also great as a snack on its own!

Ingredients
- 2-3 cloves of Garlic
- 2 oz of softened butter
- 1 loaf of French Bread

Recipe
1) Preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit
2) "Crush the garlic cloves and mix them into the butter" (MacDonald, 78)
3) Slice the bread in half, lengthwise, and spread the garlic butter generously

4) "Put it in the oven for 10-12 minutes" (78)
5) Enjoy!

Would you prefer to eat this with a main dish or by itself as a snack?
Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.

Banana Bread

Banana bread is an easy to make, yet healthy desert item! It is delicious and takes very little effort to prepare.

Ingredients
- 2 oz. butter
- 2 oz. sugar
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 8 oz. flour
- 2 large bananas
- 6 oz. yogurt
- chopped nuts (optional)

Recipe
1) Grease and flour your baking pan to prepare for cooking
2) "Cream the butter and sugar together until you have a soft light mixture." (MacDonald, 34)

3) When you finish the sugar and butter mixture, mix in the beat eggs, mashed bananas and yogurt

4) Pour the mixture into your pan and make sure the top is level

5) Bake at 350 "for 55-60 minutes, or until it feels firm when gently pressed." (34)
6) Leave to cool when finished for 10 minutes, and enjoy!

Do you think this recipe would be better with or without nuts?
Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.

French Onion Soup

Looking for a warm, quick to prepare meal? Look no further, create a batch of French Onion Soup!

Ingredients
- Olive Oil
- Onions
- Sugar
- Garlic
- Beef stock
- Salt & Pepper
- French Bread
- Cheese of your choice


Recipe
1) Pour the olive oil into a large pot and add the onions along with the sugar and garlic, let these ingredients brown. "Dont worry if the sugar starts to stick to the bottom of the pan - this is normal." (MacDonald, 107)

2) Add the beef stock and salt and pepper to your taste
3) "Bring to the boil, then turn down to simmer for about one hour." (107)
4) Place cheese of your choice on top of the bread, and place the bread in the oven till cheese melts

5) Place the bread into the soup and enjoy!


Though this meal is easy to prepare, the boiling and simmering of the soup can be time consuming, do you think this is worth it?
Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.

Apple Sauce

Apple Sauce is an easy to make, nutritious and fun way to eat apples while eating healthy

Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons of Water
2 Lbs of apples
1 oz of sugar
Lemon juice (optional)

Steps:
1) Peel and slice the apples


2) Pour the water into a medium to large sized saucepan and add low-medium heat
3) Place the apples in the saucepan
4) "Stir occasionally to ensure each piece is coated with juice, this is to prevent the apple discoloring" (MacDonald,27)

5) Add the sugar and continue to "stir until the apple has broken down into a fluffy mass" (Macdonald)
6) Enjoy!

This was super easy to make (less than a half hour) and was delicious as well!

If you made this, would you add any other ingredients to enhance the recipe? Perhaps cinnamon?
Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.

Cooking and Food Safety Tips

Before you even begin to start cooking, you need to make sure that you, are safe. Also, you should make sure that the food you are preparing is being prepared in a way that is free from bacteria, germs, etc.

"Check sell by and use by dates before buying food and only buy what you can use before those dates expire." (MacDonald, 24) You also want to make sure not to use or purchase any ingredient in a plastic container where it is swollen, or a significant difference in size. "This is caused by bacterial action and a sign that the contents will be unsafe to eat.



Food meant to be chilled, should be put in the refrigerator or freezer as soon as possible after purchasing them. If they are not, they may go bad and grow mold and become unusable.

Allow all frozen meat to COMPLETELY thaw before cooking and preparing

When cooking for others, ask if they may suffer from any allergies before giving them and preparing them any food.

Make sure to have common sense while cooking, "Saucepans are less likely to spill the hot contents if you keep the handles turned away from the cooker."(25)

Keeping all these in mind while preparing food and cooking will help keep you and your guests safe and healthy!

What do you think is the most important safety tip while preparing food?

Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.

How To Cook From A-Z

For IRP Quarter 2, I will be cooking and the book I will be reading is How to Cook from A to Z. I am doing this topic because I am very interested in cooking. Also I believe it is a skill you need as you grow older, to be able to provide a meal for yourself.

















Macdonald, Janet W. The Basic Basics How to Cook from A-Z. London: Grub Street, 1998. Print.