One of the smartest things I’ve done in life was to go to culinary school — not because I’m a chef, but because we eat like kings and queens every night with fresh ingredients and wonderful blends of flavor.”
One of our sons went to a good culinary school, and he taught my wife some of his top recipes. He and a doctor friend taught me how to shop for good fresh food.
His motto was/is only buy fresh and real foods in season and don’t use poly syllable anything when cooking.
Olive oil, fresh Meyer Lemon from our tree, sea salt and fresh ground pepper are his basics in seasoning.
He taught my wife how to oven cook complete meals on parchment paper on/in a single cookie metal sheet. As the pot and dishwasher, I appreciate this. After dinner, throw the used parchment paper into the recycle container and wipe off the cookie sheet/pan, and load the other dishes into the dish washer.
Sheet pan meals are a fantastic way to blend flavors and make for a quick and easy meal that feeds several. (By the way, I demoted my wife to pot and dishwasher after I went to culinary school. It seemed less demeaning than to fire her completely.)
Having fresh herbs on hand are another way to really amp up your meals. We have a continuous supply of sage, thyme, rosemary, chives, oregano, and peppermint (a great substitute for anything asking for parsley, dill, or cilantro) in our house to feed my recipes. One thing I learned from reading Jamie Oliver's methods before I went to school myself is to throw out the measuring cups and spoons for herbs. Simply chop up a handful and toss them in -- and the more the merrier. We also make our own sourdough bread which adds a wonderful touch to meals, especially breakfast.
It's a shame that we don't spend more effort teaching our children to cook and eat fine foods. Eating is one of the great sensations of life, right up there with sex. It's a myth that it's more expensive to eat well, and it's a talent -- like learning a musical instrument -- that will follow one through life to the grave.