How appropriate this thread just came back.
In reference to the man card issue and cooking.
The reason I am so adimat that men who cook well earn man cards is because I live with one that I don't allow to use my pots and pans or the crockpot.
He is allowed to use one very solid and indestructable pan, one crappy pot, a kettle and the microwave (and I'd ban him from the microwave if I wasn't positive he'd starve to death)
Today, I had to corner him and interigate him on past and future big batch meals. I like to do the cook up a large meal on the weekend, portion it out in containers and stock the fridge with them to be heated and eaten during the following week.
But I also hate leftovers with a firey passion and, as he tends to contribute to my grocery money when I do this, I try to make stuff he likes so it all gets eaten.
Todays interigation partially involved some stew cabbage and kielbasa stuff I made. During the initial conversation, Dad gave it a positive but vague reveiw.
Only to reappear, later...
"Hey, that cabbage stuff? You know you should do? Make it with corned beef! Or pork!"
"Well, I've never done anything with corned beef before..."
"Well, you should learn!"
"Dad, I don't really like corned beef."
"Oh, well..."
And then he wandered off, all sad clown.
While I would love to snark back that if he wants corned beef he can learn to make it himself, the result would be Dad in the kitchen. Dad in the kitchen burning food, destroying cookwear and I'd get to clean up the mess afterwards.
*sigh* so, now I feel bad and will eventually have to break down and cook him cabbage and corned beef.
Maybe, if I find something that involves lots of spinich he'll forget about it.
At least he knows better then to ask for Spam.
