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Dear Gigi,
How can I get my wife to cook dinner? I have two jobs to support us and allow her to stay home with our kids. She is a terrific Mom and takes great care of the house, but she dislikes cooking and seldom does it. We eat out often and that is getting expensive. Is there any way to get her to cook dinner?

The easiest way to get someone to cook for you is to be quick with encouragement, praise and appreciation. If you criticize or find fault she will stop trying. The person who does not like to cook feels apprehension and angst when she thinks about cooking. She is afraid that whatever she cooks will not turn out right, will not taste good, and no one will eat it. If you want someone to cook for you encourage her efforts no matter how small they may be. Focus on what she is doing right. Initially, it might just be that she made the attempt, eventually she will improve and the compliments will be many. Do not be too particular in the beginning; be easy to please until she gains some confidence. Your encouragement and acknowledgement just might lead to something other than just a home cooked meal.

Dear Gigi,
I am thrilled to have my own apartment, but now I have to cook for myself. My mom has always cooked for me and I do not have a clue what to eat or how to cook it.

You do not need a degree in nutrition to eat well; you just have to choose real food. Real food has not been processed in any way; it has real flavor and all of the nutrition Mother Nature put into it. You will know real food when you see it because it never comes with a label. Eat convenience, prepackaged, and fast foods as treats. They are fine to enjoy occasionally, but pound for pound they are more expensive than real foods and they do not give you as much nutrition, or food energy, for your money.

Put your favorite meat in a pot with your favorite vegetables; add chicken stock and simmer. The leftover stew freezes well too. When you are preparing vegetables cut them into small pieces, put in a microwave safe bowl, add one tablespoon of water, cover and cook until soft. Cook any vegetable in oil and garlic and do not add water; serve over rice or pasta. The easiest sauce to make is oil, garlic, canned tomatoes and fresh basil. You can put that on top of anything. Remember, cooking is easier than you think, and you do not have to cook perfectly, but you do need to give yourself time to experiment and learn. Until you get the hang of it, stop by and visit your mom around dinnertime. She will love the visit and you can count on a good meal.

Dear Gigi,
Why do you recommend that we buy bone-in, skin-on chicken? I thought boneless, skinless chicken breasts were the healthiest.

When you order a steak at a restaurant, do you ask the chef to remove all of the fat and bone? You probably do not; you know the fat and bone add flavor to the meat. The same is true with chicken. Bone adds a depth of flavor that you lose when the meat is cooked without the bone. The bone does not add any extra fat or calories so it just makes sense to cook chicken that is still on the bone. I suggest cooking chicken with the skin on because the skin adds richness to the sauce and keeps the meat moist. The additional flavor and taste satisfaction it adds to the finished dish is incomparable. You can always discard the skin, as you do the fat from your steak, before you eat it. Bone-in, skin-on chicken is also less expensive; buy it that way and then, if you must, take the skin off yourself.

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