At long last, the video for week #6 is edited!  Thanks again to Liz and Jesse for putting me up for two nights and all the fun that was cooking and filming this episode!  Enjoy!

Without further ado, except pointing you to the recipe, here is Mike Rupp’s creation; Kofta with rice, mushrooms and spinach.

Building on the great success of the first two weeks challenges, it’s time for week #3′s challenge.  The fridge isn’t offering up a lot of different ingredients at the moment so I’m calling an audiable and going to the pantry.  Not that I have any hard, fast rule about only using produce, but I prefer fresh (and Organic!) ingredients.  With that in mind, this week’s challenge is to use the following ingredients and up to two of your own and come up with a recipe:

• Ground lamb (1lb)
• Baby Spinach
• White Rice
• White Mushrooms

If you need help in how this challenge thing works, check out How This Works.  Basically, take the ingredients listed above and up to two of your own, add in any of the spices and herbs I already have and come up with a recipe.  Feel free to list the recipe at your own site and link back to it, or just post the whole thing in the comments section below.  You have until 10am, Pacific Time (UTC-8) to list your recipe.  This site is all about trying new things while I learn to cook more and I can use your help!

Thanks! 

Peter

Week two’s Cheesy Turkey Nuggets recipe sent in from Jess Kohl was a splattering, goopy, delicious success!  A recap of the challenge can be found here.  And now the video! (PS, I might get daring next week and make an introduction including some music! Maybe)

Hello and welcome to the second weekly challenge at Help Peter Cook.com.  If you need a refresher in how this ball of fun works, check out How This Works in the menu above.  Also, I’ve updated the Spices & Herbs list to include what I bought this week (I also now have butter!  Wahoo!)

This week’s challenge should be fairly easy, so you may need to get a bit creative!

The four ingredients you have to work with are:

• Ground Turkey – 1lb
• Brussels Sprouts – lots
• Red Bell Pepper – 1
• Green Beans

You may add up to two ingredients of your own liking.  Then please either post your recipe in the comments below, or post a link to your own website with a recipe any average guy could make!  You have 24 hours, or until 10am Pacific Time (UTC-8) on Tuesday the 24th.  The winning recipe will then be cooked up by me and video taped for the whole world to see, with you getting all the credit. Good luck!

As a recap, week #1′s challenge was to take halibut, broccoli, onions and shitake mushrooms, and up to two ingredients of your own choosing, and post a recipe that would work for an average cook and his daughter.  While I don’t have my daughter on camera, she loved this halibut (minus the onions and mushrooms, but I knew that going into it).  I still can’t believe how buttery it tastes!  Thanks again to Kay from Kayotic Kitchen for the recipe.  The recipe can be found under “Recipes” at the top of this website.

And now for the video of my attempt at this recipe!

I’ve got some good news and some bad news.  The good news is Kay’s recipe was wonderful!  The bad news is, I can’t find my cable for my video camera.   I will find it and get the video posted, in the mean time enjoy the still shot of Kay’s great recipe.

Kay, Kay, Who’s this Kay person?   She was the lone and winning entry for this week’s challenge.   It’s a great recipe and while I didn’t have any butter (I’m new) it has a wonderful, creamy butteriness I’ve never had with halibut.  Kay added in milk and flour to the onions and mushrooms to create a yummy sauce that I managed not to botch up, in spite of nearly burning myself with the boiling hot olive oil.  You’ll have to wait for the video, I’m sorry.  I don’t scream, but come close to it. 

Kay runs a fabulous website with tons of cooking tips called kayotickitchen.com.  She also has some wonderful non food photography over at Kayotic.com.   Give her a moment and check them both out!

So look for the video to be posted soon and tune in Monday for another exciting recipe challenge!

The kitchen in coming together and will be ready for the first video blog challenge post next week!  Right now I’m working on spices and herbs.  Up at the top of the site you’ll notice a link to Spices & Herbs.  I need some help rounding out the list of vital "Must Have!" items in the kitchen. For now I’ll be purchasing dried herbs but as I now have a planter window in the kitchen, I’ll soon be switching to fresh herbs in pots.

So here’s the list of what I currently have.  Please leave a comment below of anything you feel is vital to add!  Thanks!

• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Basil
• Oregano
• Parsley
• Turmeric
• Sage
• Cumin
• More Coming Soon!
• Salt
• Pepper
• Bay Leaves
• Paprika
• Dill Weed
• Cinnamon
• Garlic (might not be a spice or an herb, but it’s always around)

Hello and welcome to Help Peter Cook!   The site will go truly live the week of February 16th, 2009 with the first cooking challenge presented to you, the viewing audience.  The idea is simple:  I’ll list at least 4 ingredients in my kitchen that I have available.  You will then be challenged to come up with a recipe that includes those four items plus up to two other ingredients.  You will have 24 hours to post your ideas.

You can then post your recipe in the comments of the initial challenge post or link back to your own site.  The recipe should be something scrumptious for a seven year old as well as me and there will be some restrictions and suggestions to follow (prefer gluten free, but not required, prefer less dairy and meat, but some is ok, etc…).  Normal spices and herbs are available for use and will not count against the two items you may select.

The following day the best recipe will be chosen and posted for all to see.  I’ll then rush off to the grocery store to procure the extra ingredients and then come home to record the cooking process on video, presented here on this site when complete.  This whole process will take but a day and is meant to be fun and semi-interactive.  I have a Twitter account located here and you’ll be able to follow along in the cooking process to make further suggestions, especially if I run into a snag, which is likely.

More details and rules will be available in further posts.  For now, sign up to this blog via RSS.

I look forward to many cooking adventures and welcome your suggestions!