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I was out of my element -- and Donny was nowhere to be found. I've biked in minus 20-degree weather. I've talked my way out of cacophonous situations. I've worked with teenagers. But for some reason, making stuffed pork chops was requiring more attention to detail than I thought. 

I wasn't rushing or over-analyzing (but I do tend to talk a bit after some good coffee), I just misread a measurement. It turns out, when your salt-to-stuffing ratio is 1:1, well, everything just tastes like salt.

I guess the moral of this story is either talk less or taste your progress. As you may have guessed, I'm going with the latter.

Luckily, I tasted the stuffing before the pork chop was grilled. I was relieved that I hadn't become a deer, because it was gross, you know. Crisis averted.

I'm not being facetious when I say, cooking has taught me many things that I haven't learned anywhere else. Now I'm constantly tasting what I'm making. It's so important to check yourself as you progress through whatever you're working on. Play "devil's advocate" with yourself, ask a straight-shootin' friend for advice and live in the moment.

I'm still a novice but now I'm making dishes like whisky shrimp wrapped in prosciutto, wild rice pilaf with squash, zucchini spaghetti and pesto and of course, the Mexican garbage burrito.

I encourage you to taste your progress, until it gets you in trouble.

I have discovered food. Real food. Let me back up a bit and explain. 

Two months ago I thought heating a Lean Cuisine was considered "making dinner." I thought chopping and mincing were the same thing. I thought the word fresh meant it would expire eventually. And then I started cooking with Laura Bonicelli for her fresh meal delivery service, Solo by Bonicelli.

And now for a quick history of my eating escapades. I've eaten at nice restaurants and when I was little my folks tried to feed me vegetables. When I was in high school I frequently made PBJs and chicken nuggets. In college my golden rule was, "Is it microwaveable?" Beyond that, I fell into the habit of eating out and making Lean Cuisines.

I mean, what's not to love about Lean Cuisines? They appear healthy, they're ready in less than four minutes and there are over 120 varieties! All that combined with a $4 price tag made these a staple in my freezer. I thought I was beating the system. I was eating healthy and had more time to do other things.

So when I started cooking with Laura I didn't know what I was doing at all. It was kind of funny and kind of sad at the same time. 

I recall one of my first days on the job when Laura said something like, "Can you hand me a colander after we're done blanching the tomatoes?

I said, "What's a colander and where is the blanch?"

She said, "oh."

Fortunately I'm a quick learner and I was excited to jump in. When I took this job I thought I would learn some cooking but I never thought I would end up liking it this much. I've been cooking all of my own meals (with a few exceptions) and I have grown to truly appreciate food and the process of preparing it from start to finish.

I'll update again soon with some photos and more thoughts and possibly some more in-depth anecdotes…