If you had any idea how shameful my cooking skills were you would probably bop me over the head with a frying pan. It has nothing to do with not wanting to cook but rather not having the common sense when it comes to cooking. And I am not kidding or exaggerating when I say that. As a matter of fact, let me just take you through my recent cooking experience and you’ll see what I mean. I warn you now, if you are a culinary expert, Paula Deen, or even have a smidgen of cooking experience under your apron this may be painful to read. Just saying.

For months now I have been saying I’m going to learn to cook more dishes. Luckily for me, my husband and son aren’t terribly demanding and could live off of the few dishes I do know how to make. Pancakes, scrambled eggs, spaghetti & meatballs, chicken & rice, etc. And of course vegetables and fruits with lots of frozen dinners thrown in, and anything that comes directly from a box or can. You would think that I could at least mix some of those boxes and canned items together to make a meal but that’s just too darn creative for me. I’m boring and uninspired in the kitchen but again I stress that it is just because I fear the kitchen and all the gadgets that I have no idea what to do with.

A week ago my husband, Shaun, decided to start cooking from these recipe cards he found at our Kroger supermarket. I thought, what the heck, let’s see how they taste. They were pretty good and it looked like it was taking a short amount of time for my husband to prepare. But that was my husband. He knew his way around the kitchen more than I did so I still had very little hope left for myself. But I thought let me just try and see if I can pull this off. The motivation came even more so after Shaun ripped the recipe card out of my hand and was about to start cooking.

I said, “I can do it”. He told me, “No you can’t. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”

OH NO SIR! IT IS ON, LIKE FLAN!

So I snatched that bad boy out of hubby’s hands and started reading - and sweating profusely out of sheer nervousness but determined to at least try.

The recipe was for Chile Con Carne and said that it could be prepared in 30 minutes with 7 ingredients. I took a deep breath and got out the items it called for:

Ingredients

8 Servings (1 cup each)

• 1 pound ground round beef (85% lean)
• 3/4 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 cans (10 oz each) Ro*Tel® Original Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, undrained
• 1 can (14.25 oz each) beans in chili seasoned sauce
• 1 can (8 oz each) Hunt’s® Tomato Sauce

With the ingredients taken out and ready to go I grabbed the recipe card and followed the first step the recipe called for:

Directions

1. Heat large saucepan over medium-high heat; add beef, onion and garlic. Cook and stir 5 minutes or until beef is crumbled and no longer pink; drain.

Okay, so I grabbed the frying pan before I realized that it probably wasn’t the same thing as a saucepan, and common sense should have told me the large saucepan, not the bitty one I grabbed at first. I’m just glad I realized it after a minute. Next up, the yellow onion. I wasn’t even sure if this particular onion would have me crying from it or not. And trying to figure out how to peel the onion, yup, that was entertaining. I had NO CLUE how to do it effectively!

Then I heard hubby’s voice asking, “Do you know what to do with the garlic?”

Then he brought over this tiny contraption - which after looking it up online that night I found out was a garlic press.

“Uh yeah”, I lied. Who would’ve guessed. Definitely not I.

Boy I was in over my head. I rationalized that the entire garlic couldn’t possibly fit into this press thing so I assumed I needed just one piece. I peeled it and squished it up until I had 1 teaspoon. Score!

The rest was just tossing it all into the saucepan and stirring it around till the meat was no longer pink. Then I had to figure out where I could drain the meat. Should I drain it in the plastic drainer I used for my spaghetti or use the metal one over the sink?!?! I opted for the metal one.

2. Stir in chili powder. Add undrained tomatoes, chili beans and tomato sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 10 minutes.

Since I’m a bit of a wimp with spicy foods - though this isn’t really a spicy dish, I’m just super sensitive - I decided to toss in half the amount of chili powder. Everything else was a breeze after that.

Voilà! A masterpiece in under 40 minutes - took me an extra 10 minutes to try and figure things out but next go round should be 3o minutes now that I got the hang of it.

I’m so glad I had a resource like the Kroger ” Give Every Night New Flavor” microsite - which is designed to help you plan weeknight meals by offering a variety of recipes, as well as coupons to help you save. It got me started on my cooking adventures and now there is no turning back. I know it will take a little extra time but I know my persistence will pay off. It already has because I was able to provide a good meal for my family and I did it all by myself.

How do you like them apples, Shaun?!?!

So I’m a tad competitive. Shoot, whatever gets the cooking done is all good, right? But I’ll stop gloating now so I can tell you how you can get in on some cooking fun, too.

Anyhow, as part of the “Give Every Night New Flavor” program - and thanks to our friends at ConAgra and Kroger - we are giving one (1) lucky reader a Prize Pack, valued at $50!

• $25 Kroger Gift Card
• Recipe Cards
• A variety of ConAgra products

Be sure to enter below for your chance to win a Prize Pack and stop by www.GiveEveryNightNewFlavor.com for more great recipes. Don’t forget that you can also click on the Coupon Tab for some great digital coupon savings for your Kroger Shopping Card. Don’t have one yet? Now’s the perfect time to sign up for free!

Enjoy the recipes and savings and come back and share your thoughts with us. We’d love to hear from you!

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Disclosure: As part of this campaign I was provided compensation, promotional items and ConAgra products from ConAgra Foods. And most importantly a new way to feed my poor, starving for something good to eat, family.