I agree with Linnea, all beans do not taste the same and do not have the same applications. I love all beans, but I do not particularly like plain beans, any more than I like plain tofu. Beans have a bland taste IMHO, which is why I love them, they can be spiced up in so many ways. But I don't like to mix and match either. What I make in the crockpot is baked beans (I like mine sweet and sour and spicy), black bean soup--again, spicy with chilis, and curried kidney beans (I just tried that recipe, dark red kidneys with a spicy curry sauce-yum, but then I like curry.) I use garbanzos and cannelinni beans with pasta and italian, middle eastern and spanish flavors. I would hate either one plain, I eat garbanzos in hummus, highly seasoned salads, or stews. Lentils taste earthy to me too, I do not like some lentil soups, but when I make mine I add tomato sauce, a bit of vinegar at the end, and something bitter like spinach, green pepper or celery. That's greek style. I also do sweet and sour lentils with pineapple and peppers. Or baked spaghetti with lentils, italian seasoned tomato sauce, and a hearty red wine like burgundy, topped with sharp parmesean. That would be yummy, but plain lentils would taste like dirt to me. I'm not a huge fan of blackeyed peas, although I like them in hoppin' john which I make with tabasco to counter the "earthy" taste. I'm not a huge fan of pintos, they also have an "earthy" taste to me. Particularly plain pintos. Those I can enjoy with a spicy salsa and sharp cheddar topping though. Same with kidney beans, they have an earthy taste which IMHO contrasts nicely with something spicy--so in my mixed veggie and spiced minnestrone or chili, I like them! I also like a tangy three bean salad, but not plain, I like it on lettuce with some other vegetables and croutons or sunflower seeds mixed in. So it seems to me, the key to enjoying beans is to season them well and mix them with sour, spicy, bitter, sharp and tangy flavors. That's part of the idea behind adding epazote to dried beans when cooking. I eat beans almost every day, but I would also find a bowl of plain beans very hard to palate. On the other hand, a spicy bowl of mixed bean chili with a dollop of lowfat sour cream and a few tortillas crumbled on top is my idea of heavan. Yesterday I had mixed color bowtie pasta, spicy ratatouille with lots of garlic, etc., and garbanzos all topped with parmesean and toasted pine nuts, that was delish. I've had plain garbanzos once, in a spicy curried gravy, that was good too--over brown rice.

I'm fond of how-to information, which appeals to my need-to-know personality as an information geek; and luckily that type of information is so readily available these days. I started in my mother's kitchen as a child, reading a few cookbooks and booklets that were more than just recipes; good basic training as a kid in 4-H, and bless a really great Home Economics teacher in high school where I caught the cooking/baking bug in earnest. The public library has been a good friend for ever and always - I can check out the shelves at the library and come up with videos, DVDs and great instructional books on nearly any subject concerning cooking and baking. And all those years of watching the pros on TV. I've purchased DVDs from King Arthur Flour on several subjects. I have Shirley O. Corriher's "Kitchen Secrets Revealed!" (I also recommend her books, CookWise and BakeWise). I've watched "Good Eats" videos and DVDs by Alton Brown since they were first available on TV and also checked them out from the library. I also have a bunch of books by Harold McGee, starting with "On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of the Kitchen". The Cooking Channel web site has "tons" of videos (http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/). So if you want to know something, it's out there.... I'm also a life-long believer in continuing education. There are so many classes available. I've taken classes in Greek Foods, Irish Foods, sausage making, home-canning, dehydrating, nutrition, how to write a recipe, even using a microwave oven back in the 1970's, bread classes of all kinds.... And then the old saying - knowledge isn't knowledge until you share it with others - which has led to a near lifetime of teaching food and nutrition classes in our community. Everything from 4-H, Girl Scouts, to elderly men at the senior center who were now in charge of cooking for the first time in their lives.... I couldn't begin to guess how many people have taken "Bread-in-a-Bag" classes - both youngsters and oldsters. General basic nutrition and cooking classes at the Food Bank. Cooking with commodities classes, using commodity foods distributed to low-income individuals and families. These classes have been well received and are great fun. I love food science and consider it a "good read", so you'll find a lot of technical manuals and college-level text books in my personal library. I want to know why something works or doesn't. As a Foods Judge at County Fairs I need to know judging standards, but also why one muffin, pie, cake, cookie, biscuit, loaf of quick or yeast bread, etc., isn't as good as another. What went wrong or right and to be able to share that information with entries in the competition. Those are technical skills not found in a recipe, but take years of self-study. Anyway, it's not just one thing and you'll have to find your own comfort and interest level. I've also had some very good mentors through the years. I'm always endearing myself to someone who knows - so I can learn from them. -Grainlady

This thread, which I didn't catch the first time around, made me think. In general, I cook to eat and feed my family. However, I do enjoy baking for special occasions. I think that if I didn't work outside the home I would cook more...and be more adventurous. But, I work and have a long commute so by the time I get home I have to make fast meals with little time for creativity or major prep work. So, we eat a lot of frozen veggies--as is out of the bag, pre-cooked meats warmed up, pasta, soup, occasionally waffles/pancakes/eggs, potatoes, etc. I.e., for the most part things that I can cook fast. One up side to this is that our meals haven't changed that much w/o a kitchen since we do have a MW, Toaster Oven, and hot plate to cook with! One very big downside to this, though, is that my children are not learning to cook like I did from my mom. Back on topic... After finding this site and reading about zones, I realized that one thing that I really wanted was a baking center. So when my kitchen was being designed I had it in the back of my head that whatever we ended up with had to have an area I could designate my "Baking Zone", preferably near the ovens--with room to roll out dough, spread out cookie sheets, and have cookie cutters spread out all at the same time! The other thing I got from this site was our window...having the window down to the counter (OK, not cooking-related, but a very important design element!) Our very first plan that our KD came up with had input from us...but a very naive/ignorant us! (Before GW...BGW!) Then....I found this site.....and the changes began. Actually, I posted that original plan and asked for help (and also asked my KD to start over w/no island) Many, many people here helped me come up with a plan over several weeks (months?). We finally came up with a plan that has changed little since then. Interestingly, when I took away the island "must have", my KD came up with a plan very similar to what we came up with here. The only 3 differences were (1) no mini peninsula, (2) a 36" pantry cabinet rather than a corner pantry, and (3) no separate Message Center cabinets. My KD wasn't completely happy w/our differences, but she, wisely I thought, told me to go home and mock up what I wanted to see how it would work (same advice I got here!) Well, the mock up was great! It proved that I did indeed want the mini peninsula (I liked it so much I left the mock up in place until demo and used it!) When I told her the results, she didn't argue, she accepted it telling me it's my kitchen, so ultimately it's up to me. So in the end, my design was/is based on what I wanted, not what the KD wanted. [If only someone else had measured my kitchen and she was given more authority, I think a lot of subsequent problems would have been avoided.] Our kitchen isn't done yet, but it's close...so I can't yet tell you how it is going to work for us...but we are so...

I maintain that an old GF of mine believed the smoke detector was a timer. Anyway, a couple thoughts: For cookbooks, I still like the church/school/local fundraiser type cookbooks. Yes, there's duplicates and yes it'll use canned goods and other convenience items but for confidence building they're a good place to start IMO. Plus I find many of them entertaining to read. You've said you cook soup, stew, roast, etc, so you're not a total newbie to cooking. Do you like what you cook? If so, you're a good cook. Has anyone complemented you on your cooking? If so, it's confirmed. "Good" is a subjective term. If you don't like your cooking or are "meh" about it, what's wrong? Under/over seasoned? Under/over cooked? If something like that, that's a good place to start. "Cooking" is also apparently a subjective term. I know people to take a store-bought rotisserie chicken, some frozen vegetables, a can of soup, some Minute Rice and a frozen pie crust with some canned pie filling and say they "cooked". OK. If that's cooking to them, more power to them. Don't get me wrong, convenience foods are fine if that's your thing and often it can help you improve. Example: Maybe you like lasagna and start with a frozen one. Then maybe you think it needs more cheese and a little more seasoning. Good. Put on more cheese and add some seasoning. Make your own garlic bread to go with it. Then when you're more confident, try making a lasagna of your own. You don't need to make your own noodles unless you want to. And there are some good bottled/canned pasta sauces. Try some different cheeses you like. Maybe put in some cooked sausage instead of hamburger or stick with burger. Do a little more each time or progress at your own speed. Are you being intimidated by the shows that everything has to be "gourmet" or some fancy presentation? I personally do not eat with my eyes, I eat with my mouth and my taste buds tell me if it's good or not. That piece of parsley on the plate and having the fish sticks stacked in a pyramid do nothing for me. I suspect there's some modesty here. Like I said, you know how to cook some things so don't put yourself down. I know a several people who would love to be able to cook roasts, soups, stews, etc.