Laura Newman: Our PhD in the Kitchen
“Start simple and just get down a few basic techniques and recipes.”
Laura Newman our latest Hero in the Kitchen loves baking (check out that 6-layer cake with Swiss butter cream frosting above!) and cooking. Even with her busy academic schedule, she’s still found a way to spend time in the kitchen. Even more impressive? She’s convinced her fiance to join her! Her story below:
Name: Laura Newman
Age: 29
City, State: Seattle, Washington
Outside of the kitchen I: I am a PhD student in Epidemiology at the University of Washington, and Rich my fiance is a Mechanical Engineer.
I cook for: myself and Rich, and often for dinner parties with friends. Additionally, I have a huge sweet tooth and love to bake dessert!
Being able to cook allows me to: express my love for my family and friends.
Favorite Cook Smarts meal: Teriyaki Salmon
What’s been your biggest kitchen challenge?
I am an avid cook and baker; I’ve been known to spend days preparing food and cake for my own birthday. However, with daily school demands on my time and mental energy, I’ve started to see weekday dinners as a huge chore.
How has Cook Smarts helped you with this challenge?
I’ve found that Cook Smarts relieves my decision fatigue and makes it easy to plan for and make dinner. Pre-made shopping lists and quick dinners have turned the burden of everyday dinners into a much more enjoyable affair, and I can spend all of the time saved with my fiance!
It is also a real testament to Cook Smarts that Rich is able to follow the instructions and is overcoming his phobia of attempting dinners. It has offered him a gateway to cooking, which everyone in the household appreciates.
“It is also a real testament to Cook Smarts that my fiance is able to follow the instructions and is overcoming his phobia of attempting dinners. “
What recent kitchen accomplishment are you most proud of?
I recently made a 6-layer red, white, and blue cake for the 4th of July which I was pretty proud of. With regard to every day cooking, I’m most proud when Rich, who can practically burn water, tries his hand at dinner preparation. He has been able to use Cook Smarts to approach the task of cooking, which is really very daunting for someone who never grew up learning how to do so. Despite little experience in the kitchen, Rich is most proud of mastering the perfect poached egg for weekend brunches.
What advice would you give to other home cooks that want to cook more?
Start simple and just get down a few basic techniques and recipes. I have a few straightforward go-to meals that I cook if I’m in a rush or can’t decide what else to make.
Thanks Laura for sharing your love of baking and cooking with us. It’s so great to see you sharing these loves with your fiance too. We hope you all cook up a lot of good memories in the kitchen together!
To join Laura and cook meals like her favorite teriyaki salmon, sign up for our meal plan service. You can get started for free!
