One of the things I like most about Julia Child is that she didn’t start cooking in earnest until she was halfway through her thirties. And she ended up becoming the name in cooking in the United States.
Everyone has to start somewhere. Even if you are barely boiling water right now, with a bit of work and determination you too could be making duck confit. I started out with blueberry muffins when I was a kid, and even though I’ve graduated to stuff like puff pastry and macarons, I’ll never get over blueberry muffins.
To help you with your culinary journey, I’m giving away a Wüsthof Gourmet 2-piece Utility Set. The set includes a great pair of kitchen shears and a 3-inch paring knife. Wüsthof makes fabulous knives at all price points, and when I was given this set through a promo my local grocery store was doing, I knew I wanted to pass it along. If you already have a good set of knives, this would be a great gift for the budding chef in your life.
Note: This isn’t a sponsored giveaway. Wüsthof has no idea who I am. I just really like the set of knives I have from them and know someone else would appreciate them too!
Giveaway Details
1. Entry #1: Leave a comment on this post. Talk about the very first thing you learned how to make, if you like.
2. Entry #2: Retweet this contest, being sure to mention @stetted so I know you’ve done it!
3. You have until Thursday, December 10 at 8 p.m. EST to get all your entries in. The winner will be announced that night and notified via e-mail.
4. The winner will be chosen by Random.org
Good luck!
P.S. Don’t forget to send in your 2010 Reading Group Nominations for a chance to win all six books we read!
P.P.S Please vote for my Sweet Beef Stew in the POM Wonderful Recipe contest by clicking here!
Well you really had to get me thinking….my first thing I made were brownies at 11 from the better homes and garden cookbook and I still make that recipe at 53 god I am old…! Great giveaway thanks for the opportunity!
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I love Wusthof knives! I have 3 Wusthof chef’s knives, but no paring knife and no (working) kitchen shears. I mean none at all, lol!
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I began cooking at the age of 9 soon after I received a Sesame Street Cookbook from Santa…as a serious 9 yer old cook I first made a Blizzard Cake; a chocholate cake, covered in chocolate icing topped with none other than popcorn. Now that one food memory turned itself into a book coming to QVC next month hilariouss!!
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the first thing I learned how to make was sugar cookies from my mom. I still love making them!
my friend has these knives and loves them. thanks for the chance!
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Sadly the first thing I learned to cook has nothing to do with chocolate since I’m pretty sure it was my father teaching me. He didn’t love chocolate until later in life and he never makes anything with the Sacred Substance in it.
But he was the big breakfast person in my family. He was the one who made anything beyond toast and cereal. He used to make these fired egg sandwiches and he taught me how to do it. So I think frying an egg was probably my first cooking lesson. Now I’d never fry and each an egg, at least not in lard… *shudder*
These scissors and a new paring knife would be cool.
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The first thing I learned how to cook was a cheese omelet when I was about 10 years old … my dad taught me cuz I loved cheese omelets so much!
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I used to love to drop in the “flavor egg” in the boxes of Mrs. Grass chicken soup my mom would make sometimes for a rushed lunch.
First cooking experiments as a kid were chicken soup with dumplings I made from scratch (and boy could you tell!) and something I called “Volcano Brownies” which were essentially brownie mix with cream cheese frosting, shredded coconut and pineapple on top. They were sickeningly sweet!
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Great timing! I taught a class today, Make Ahead Christmas Brunch and one of the recipes is my Grandmother’s Christmas Bread. It one of my first memories of baking in the kitchen wtih “Baba” helping her braid the bread. I am working on a blog about it now, check out http://www.thesaucygourmet.com tomorrow, I hope to have it posted before bedtime!
Would love to have these knives, I can then pass some of my older ones off to my daughter:)
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The first thing I learned to make (as a adult) was probably home-made spaghetti sauce! It’s fun and easy and super tasty!
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First thing I remember how learning how to cook was rice. Then Welsh Rarebit!!
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What an awesome giveaway! I remember making homemade sugar cookies with holiday colors sugar when I was little. And baking bread with my nana. I am retweeting now!
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scrambled eggs – so yummy – at like 6 years old- need new kitchen shears really bad
Lisa
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I used to help out in the kitchen all the time when I was younger. I was always asking questions probably driving my tia, my mom, and some of my other relatives crazy.
I am sure the first thing I made was probably mac and cheese or a boxed cake. However the first time I felt like I was awesome was when I was like 13 or 14 and made a chicken spaghetti casserole type thing. I had never tried the recipe and it turned out we didn’t have all the ingredients so I winged it. It was a huge hit! I didn’t write anything down about the changes
talk about learning the hard way 
Giveaways are always fun!
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I learned how to cook in 8th grade but it was not until I went to college when I really developed an interest in cooking. I started watching cooking shows on food network and experimenting with foods. Now I am very passionate about cooking and always checking out new recipes and cookbooks.
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The very first thing I learned to cook was mashed potatoes, I was around 12. I remember thinking ‘I can cook!’ and made them everyday in the summer when my mom was at work.
Cool giveaway too, Thanks!
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And I tweeted!
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I first learned how to make all types of cookies. OUr tradition became making cookies for friends and family so that was my involvement at the very early age of 6.
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I also tweeted the giveaway!
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The first thing I learned to make is pancake!
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tweet.http://twitter.com/tcarolinep/status/6522833231 @tcarolinep follower
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Great giveaway! There’s nothing better than having a great set of tools to work with in the kitchen.
The first thing I learned to make was a simple chicken and veggie stir-fry. It’s still one of my go-to weeknight meals.
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You are right. We all start somewhere! Oatmeal raisin cookies with walnuts were a first.
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