A friend on Facebook asked if people could cook and gave a quiz. It’s a little US-centric so some of my answers show my Brit perspective. I love cooking – I hate having to plan a meal every day, but the actual preparation is fine. Anyway, on to the questions:

HAVE YOU EVER?

1. Made biscuits from scratch? Yes Both Brit biscuits (UScookies) and US biscuits (Brit scones)

2. Fried fresh okra? No. Not too much fresh okra here. I’ve had it but I think it was steamed.

3.Made sourdough bread? No – don’t like it much. I’d rather have multi-grain types.

4. Fried chicken? Yes although I prefer to roast it.

5. Made spaghetti sauce from scratch? Yes, Every time I make sauce it’s from scratch

6. Made any kind of yeast bread? Yes. Nowadays I have a bread machine and experiment with stuff (I can’t cope with too much kneading) but I’ve recently made Irish soda bread, banana bread, and pizza base from scratch.

7. Baked a cake from scratch? Yes.

8. Made icing from scratch? Yes – butter icing, frosting, royal icing…

9. Cooked a pot roast with all the veggies? Yes. I have a slow cooker, a tagine, a domed enamel roaster, etc. etc.

10. Made chili from scratch? Yes, but I go easy on the chili. Too much and I can’t taste anything else.

11. Made a meatloaf? Yes though rarely because it isn’t our favourite.

12. Made scalloped potatoes? Yes

13. Made mac/cheese from scratch? Yes. I don’t like the tinned or shop made kind.

14. Made a jello salad? I assume this is an aspic salad. Don’t like it much but have made jellied beetroot which is nice.

15. Made peanut brittle? Don’t like it so no.

16. Made fudge? Yes but it was a failure.

17. Made cookies from scratch? Yes see #1

18. Cooked a pot of beans from dried beans? Yes

19. Cooked a pot of greens? Yes

20. Made cornbread? Not sure what cornbread is.

21. Make a pie dough from scratch? Yes. Not always because I’m lazy.

22. Cooked a whole turkey? Yes but not often because I prefer chicken or duck.

23. Snapped green beans and cooked them? Yes. We grow our own.

24. Made mashed potatoes from scratch? Yes

25. What’s the most people you have prepared a whole meal for? 12 but I had help. Also, party buffet for far more.

26. Poached an egg? Yes

27. Made pancakes from scratch? Yes, always, but Brit pancakes, not US ones. I think theirs are what we call drop scones and if so I have made those too.

28. Roasted vegetables in the oven instead of boiling them? Yes, frequently and I never boil them, I steam them.

29. Made fresh pasta? No – don’t see the point. I can’t tell the difference in taste.

30. Made croissants from scratch? No, not keen on croissants and they’re cheap.

31. Made tuna salad? Yes – had it last night, in fact

32. Fried fish? Yes – I usually make my own breadcrumbs and fry with those and egg, but sometimes I bake fish in the oven (in foil) with herbs and/or e.g. chili dipping sauce.

33. Made baked beans? No though I know you can. But there are more interesting things to do with beans.

34. Made ice cream from scratch? Yes. Most recently, one with yoghurt and juice from our red currants. I have the kind of ice cream maker you have to freeze in advance but as a child I recall stirring the mixture in a cold double pan, with salt.

35. Made jam or jelly? Yes. I like using the microwave and making small quantities.

36. Zested an orange or lemon? Yes. I seem to have at least three zesters in the small equipment drawer.

37. Made grits from scratch? What are grits?

38. Made an omelet? Yes, regularly, but we spell it omelette

39. Lived in a house without a dishwasher? Yes, growing up, and when I was first married.

40. Eaten a bowl of cereal for supper? No – prefer it for breakfast!

The photograph shows our Christmas dinner 25th December 2020.

Roast chicken

Pigs in blankets (bought ready to cook)

Roast potatoes

Roast parsnips (bought ready to cook)

Sprouts (steamed)

Bread sauce

Cranberry sauce with port

Sage and onion stuffing (added extra onion to packet mix)

Red cabbage salad

Gravy (bought ready to heat)

The things bought ready to cook were all things I can cook, and have done in the past. The choice of ready items was just dictated by time, oven and stove top space, and pans. I should probably add that our dishwasher chose Christmas to die so the pan situation was crucial. The problem with a dinner that includes a lot of ‘trimmings’ or side dishes is getting everything ready, hot and fresh, to serve at the same times. I managed it, but only by judicious choice of ready-made ingredients.