Cooking Like A Pro
By Lisa Laird
Do you like to cook? I have been cooking since I was a little girl. My mother liked variety and installed in me a love for many different foods. While cooking wasn't her favorite pastime, she was very good at it. She liked to eat and, therefore, made sure that she knew how to do it right. On the other hand, she wasn't averse to eating out. Back when I was growing up, eating out was a great treat and the thought of being able to make a dish that I had eaten in a restaurant for myself would never have occurred to me, mainly because those recipes were not available. They were strictly secret.

I grew up and married. By this time I had become an accomplished cook. Experimentation and variety are my trademarks. On the other hand, there are certain restaurant foods that just seem to call my name. I can remember the first time I spied a recipe for Colonel Sander's "original recipe" chicken. I was amazed that not only was it an amazingly easy recipe, but all of the ingredients were common ones that I could easily find in the grocery store, as well. In addition, I could even adapt it to my family's taste and get the same flavors. For example, if I wanted to make KFC style chicken, but wanted to cut back on the fat, I could take off the skin, or bake it instead of frying it.

Now, while I have many years experience in the kitchen, recreating recipes isn't always easy. It seems like there is that elusive ingredient that, if excluded, completely changes the dish. Money is an issue for my family and eating out isn't an option very often. In addition, with four children, we don't have the time (or the energy) to spend waiting in line, or waiting to be served, so eating in is the norm for us. Does that change the fact that we like to eat out? No. Does that mean that we don't have cravings for certain foods? No. So, what can we do? Well, I found recipes for the foods we like and I fix them myself. I have found places with some of the most popular, most secret recipes, and put them all

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together in one place. These recipes are easy, with readily available ingredients, and are sure to fit your budget. Do you have to be an "accomplished" cook? Not necessarily. So why not please your palate and your pocketbook at the same time. Check this out.

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