I love being a Girl Scout. I’ve actually said it helped make me who I am today. I used to be really, REALLY shy. When I was a Daisy Scout I was actually very shy. I was very quiet in class even though I knew the answer, I never raised my hand, but with help from Girl Scouts I got over it. Selling cookies is how I got over my shyness. I learned you should always smile and speak clearly. Above all, I learned confidence! I learned the simple words “Would you like to buy a box of Girl Scout Cookies?” can open a lot of doors. I met wonderful people because I asked them to buy Girl Scout Cookies. One lady was a Scout many years ago and told me she had to bake her cookies! (I don’t think I would have sold over 1,000 boxes if I had to BAKE them, but boy would I LOVE a copy of that recipe for my records!!!) Most importantly, I learned simply by asking the question, you’re building your confidence. I wasn’t shy anymore.
I now I work with lots of people. I work at Conner Prairie as a youth interpreter where I have hundreds of guests who talk to me every day. I thank cookie sales for helping me get over my shyness. If I were still shy, I wouldn’t have tried out for Food Network. I always knew I was a good enough chef to be on the show and I finally had the confidence to do it! Girl Scouts helped me do it!
Once I made the show I looked at my (new) Cadette handbook and thought about what badges I could earn while in NY. There were 4 I decided to focus on during filming. One of those badges was New Cuisines.
Last night I taught my troop that badge at our troop meeting. It was fun to bring home my knowledge and share my experiences with my friends. The badge requirements include making recipes from another time period, another region of the United States and another country. I loved researching the recipes for my troop and coming up with the dinner menu.
My experience working at Conner Prairie in the year 1836 made the first requirement fun! I was able to teach the girls about “CupCake.” This dense cake uses only 4 ingredients and is easy for the museum visitors to remember. The hardest part is translating the cook times and technology.
CupCake Recipe:
- 1 cup butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 cups flour
- 4 eggs
Crème butter and sugar.
Add Eggs.
Add flower slowly.
Mix Well.
Pour into 8×8 pan.
Bake at preheated 350 for 25 minutes.
The second recipe I taught them was from another region. I taught my troop Corn Chowdah. This creamy and hearty soup had sweet corn, but could easily be substituted for clam or lobster. This simmered while we made the entrée.
Finally, the dish from another country was my favorite to teach. (Obviously!) J I decided to teach the girls the dish I created for the show, (episode 3) Paille et de Foin (Straw and Hay Pasta) I loved teaching my friends what Rachael and Fabio taught us about how to properly make pasta and what makes a great pasta dish. The complete recipe and steps can be found on my blog here.
Once we finished the dishes, we sat down as a “family” with our leaders and enjoyed the meal. It was fun to talk about the kitchen skills we learned, the origin of the dishes and what they thought of each thing we made. Each person had a favorite. I was really proud of my friends for learning new things and proud of myself for teaching them. To me cooking comes so naturally, and I had to think about things differently to tell someone else how to do it. #MasteringTheArtOfKidsCooking Lesson 1 is in the books: “Girl Scout Cook-ing” J and I’m proud of myself and my sister Scouts! Bon Appetit!
