Learning how to cook is an exciting, sometimes-scary thing. It’s a rite of passage, a stepping stone to self-sufficiency. Soup is not just soup anymore, but a magic amalgam of vegetables, meat, spices, broth, and heat that you made yourself. Huzzah, bright new world! — where the pizza isn’t takeout, and the chicken is oven-roasted, not store-bought. Like anyone learning a new skill, those first cooking attempts are full of mistakes, doubt, and do-overs.
