DONE - No.22: Can't Cook, Won't Cook - The Challenge Stewart Didn't Want Me To Do!

So, yep, I'm the person who can burn a salad and yet I chose to do a year long cooking challenge: 'Can't Cook Wont Cook - The Challenge My Husband Didn't Want Me To Do - Cook A Meal Each Month Using A Recipe From Around the World'.  This at least wins an award for the longest challenge title!

Historically, me and kitchens and cooking do not go together - this isn't to say that I haven't tried over the years, oh goodness how hard I've tried.  But, I really shouldn't be let near kitchens, it just doesn't work.  Never mind the dangers of me being near sharp implements I even badly sprained my wrist once when trying to make sweet potato crisps.

Anyway, if you want to understand for how long I've tried to cook and for how long I haven't been very good at it, I have included a wee video below.  In 2000, me and Stewart were featured on Channel Four's Real Holiday Show- we were followed on our holiday to west Wales where the 'story' was that I would be doing the cooking yet, as I proclaimed to the nation - 'I can burn a salad'!

But anyway, to this years challenge.  For the last twelve months I have endeavoured to find a meal I could try to make each month, from around the world, twelve different meals, twelve different countries.  That's a challenge in itself I think.  Carrying it out though proved to be much harder. The list below is of the countries I've picked, the meals I cooked, and the scores that Stewart gave me for each meal - do not be hard on Stewart, I was the one who insisted he marked me and gave me honest feedback - I figured that it would be helpful to know where I've gone wrong, and what I've done correctly.  And, for the record, Stewart is an excellent cook who does all the meal planning, all the food shopping and all the cooking in this relationship. I've got it made, believe me!

So, here it is:

April - Japan - teriyaki salmon and caramlised vegetables - 8 out of 10!
May - France - chicken chausseur - 6 out of 10
June - Belgium - steak frites - 7 out of 10
July - Thailand - gang massaman curry - 9 out of 10!!!!
August - USA - homemade burgers and slaw - ZERO out ten!!!
September - Hungary - goulash - 7 out of 10
October - Italy -homemade pasta with pancetta, peas and leeks - 6 out of 10
November - Wales - cawl - 7 out of 10
December - Jamaica - jerk chicken, rice n peas - 6 out of 10
January - Greece - beef stifado - 8 out of 10
February - Morocco - lamb steaks with fruit couscous - 4 out of 10!
March - Mexico - chicken fajitas with lime rice AND Mexican cocktail - 6 out 10

The biggest disaster was my American month - homemade burgers, sweet potato chips and 'slaw.  Oh god, it couldn't get any worse. Totally didn't understand the volume of ingredients and it took me at least an hour to make the slaw which ended up being enough to feed the street.  The disaster though was right at the very end - I've done the sweet potato chips, I've done the slaw, I've mixed all the ingredients for the burgers, they just need seasoning - cue, a wee bit of pepper, the pots in my hand, I gently tap the top - and the bloody lid fell off emptying the entire tub of pepper into my gooey burger mix.  Cue, snotty hysterics.  It was horrific. Stewart, who'd waited hours for this meal was starving and he tried his best to rescue the meal and made me go ahead and cook the burgers.  I took one small bite and couldn't manage another morsel, Stewart was so hungry by this time he at most of his.  His only comment - a tad peppery!

Even though it only scored 6 out of 10, I was actually quite proud of my Italian pasta dish as I handmade the pasta from scratch without the use of any wee gadgets to get the pasta thin.  That was my downfall actually - everything was there for this to be a great meal but the pasta was just too thick. But, I was quite chuffed with myself for trying, and it tasted OK, it was just the texture.  Must admit though it did make me question why on earth anybody would go the bother of making their own - just buy it in the shops!

The prettiest meals I made?  The last two actually, yesterdays Mexican feast complete with Mexican Mule tequila cocktail, and the Moroccan lamb with fruity couscous - neither scored highly but they looked nice!

So, that leaves me to talk about the high point of my cooking year - July's attempt for Thailand month, beef gang massaman curry. I'm delighted that this turned out well.  When we lived in Leatherhead, our favourite local restaurant The Plough had a Thai restaurant and gang massaman was our favouritest meal - so the thought of me trying to get close to this was stressful.  I also knew that Stewart would have strong expectations, so when I made it, using ingredients I hadn't even heard of! - and he scored it 9 out of 10 - that was an absolute winner!

Unfortunately, it kind of gave me false expectation that perhaps the year of cooking challenges wouldn't be that bad.  Never got close to the heady heights of Thai month! But, as you can see I can did keep going.  My average score over the year was 6 out of 10 so at least the food I made was edible.  Think I've just got to accept that cooking is not an area I'm ever going to excel in. It's just not my thing, so instead I'll just have to sit back each evening and wait to be presented with delicious healthy meals that my husband makes!!!!