If cooking feels like a chore, you're not alone. Many of us were never taught the simple systems that make kitchen life run smoothly. In this post, we’re going back to basics with easy habits, helpful tools, and realistic routines that take the overwhelm out of cooking and baking. With a few foundational changes, your kitchen can become a place you actually enjoy spending time.
LEARNING TO MAKE A HOME | Published June 9, 2025
In a world where grocery store shelves are lined with packaged meals and takeout is just a tap away, cooking from scratch might feel like an outdated skill.
We traded home-cooked meals for drive-thru dinners. We let food manufacturers convince us faster is better, real cooking is too much work, and that boxed, frozen, and processed are good enough. We stopped gathering around the table, stopped passing down recipes, stopped trusting our own hands to nourish the people we love.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Imagine stepping into a kitchen where flour-dusted countertops tell the story of biscuits made by hand, where the smell of caramelized onions lingers in the air with dinner simmering on the stove.
A place where making a meal isn’t just another task to check off, but a welcome ritual with the opportunity to slow down, create, and connect.
Cooking and baking from scratch isn’t about working harder. It’s about living better, taking back control of what we eat, spending wisely, wasting less, and finding pleasure in the simple luxury of a homemade meal.
And the best part? It doesn't have to be complicated.
Why Cooking and Baking Is Easier Than You Think
The secret to a contemporary kitchen isn’t found in complex recipes or expensive ingredients, nor does it come from shortcuts and boxed meals.
It's a shift in mindset, relearning what generations before us knew: simple ingredients and basic skills can create something far more nourishing and delicious than anything from a package.
When you understand how food works, cooking becomes intuitive, natural, and enjoyable. Here’s where to begin:
1. Focus on Simple, Family-Friendly Recipes
Homemade doesn’t need to be extravagant to be good. Choose meals your family already loves and find ways to make them from scratch. A roasted chicken, a pot of homemade soup, warm chocolate chip cookies. Good food doesn’t have to be complicated.
2. Master the Basics
Techniques like roasting and sautéing turn raw ingredients into nourishing meals. Others like creaming butter and sugar are essential for chewy cookies and moist cakes.
Learning a few fundamental steps means you’ll rely less on recipes and more on instinct, knowing how to coax deep, rich flavors from simple ingredients.
3. Stock Your Kitchen with Essential Tools
You don’t need a drawer full of gadgets. Knowing which kitchen tools actually matter saves money and space in your kitchen.
- A sharp chef’s knife, cutting board, and cast-iron skillet for meal prep.
- A mixing bowl, rolling pin, and sturdy cookie sheets for all your baking needs.
- A Dutch oven for everything from artisan bread to slow-simmered soups.
- A slow cooker so that a homemade meal is always possible, even on a busy day.
Invest in just a few quality essentials and you’ll cook with confidence instead of frustration.
4. Understand Ingredients, Not Just Recipes
Good cooking is about more than following a recipe. It’s knowing why things work.
- Why does butter make pastries flaky, but oil makes cakes moist?
- How does sugar affect texture beyond just sweetness?
- What makes bread rise, and why does salt enhance flavors?
When you understand these simple truths, you’ll cook with confidence. You’ll learn to adjust recipes to your taste, make substitutions when needed, and never feel dependent on a box mix again.
5. Stay Organized in the Kitchen
A disorganized kitchen is one of the biggest roadblocks to enjoying home cooking. When your pantry is cluttered, your tools are hard to find, and your meal plans are non-existent, cooking feels overwhelming.
- Declutter your tools – Keep only what you actually use and store them within easy reach.
- Stock the pantry – With a handful of staple ingredients (like flour, rice, canned tomatoes, and olive oil), you can make dozens of meals without extra trips to the store.
- Plan a simple menu – Create a rotating list of easy, go-to recipes so you always know what’s for dinner.
READ NEXT: Baking Doesn't Have to Be Complicated - From measuring flour to mastering your oven, this series covers everything you need to know to get started.
Our grandmothers understood something we’ve forgotten: preparing food isn’t about perfection or complex recipes. It’s about understanding how ingredients work together, mastering simple techniques, and finding pleasure in the process of making, serving, and even cleaning up.
The Benefits of Cooking and Baking from Scratch
Cooking at home isn’t just about what’s on your plate—it’s about how it makes you feel. When you practice the old-fashioned art of home cooking in a way that makes sense for your modern life, you gain:
- Confidence and Independence: Knowing how to cook means you’re never at the mercy of takeout or prepackaged meals. You can create what you need from what you have.
- True Nourishment: Cooking from scratch eliminates preservatives, hidden sugars, and artificial ingredients. You control what goes into your food—and into your body.
- A Stronger Connection: Preparing a meal isn’t just about eating. It’s about gathering, sharing, and creating memories that last far beyond the last bite.
- A Sense of Home: There is nothing more welcoming than the smell of freshly baked cookies or a pot of soup simmering on the stove. These small comforts turn a house into a home.
A little preparation turns cooking from home into an effortless pleasure rather than a daily challenge.
Cooking from scratch isn’t about making life harder—it’s about making life richer.
Simple Steps to Get Started
Not sure where to begin? Start small. Here are a few easy ways to introduce more from-scratch cooking into your routine today:
1. Roast fresh veggies instead of buying canned. Toss them in olive oil, salt, and pepper, and let the oven work its magic.
2. Swap store-bought cookies for homemade. Chocolate chip, peanut butter, or oatmeal raisin are classic favorites that are easy to prepare.
3. Bake a simple loaf of bread. A no-knead bread recipe requires just four ingredients and minimal effort but fills your home with warmth and comfort.
4. Replace canned soups with an easy one-pot homemade version. The flavor can't be beat and soups are a great way of converting leftovers into a meal your family will eat.
5. Skip the instant oatmeal. Rolled oats cook in minutes and can be customized to your liking.
Small steps lead to big changes. Before you know it, you’re making more and more of your meals from real, whole ingredients.
Cooking and baking from scratch isn’t about going back in time. It’s about moving forward with confidence. It’s about embracing the simple luxury of home-cooked meals, made with real ingredients and shared with the people who matter most.
And this is just the beginning.
At anderson + grant, we believe that the kitchen is the heart of the home, a space where love is poured out with every stir and slice. This post is the start of a slow, meaningful return to cooking with intention.
We’re here to cheer you on, encourage you, and share simple, doable steps that make this journey feel not only possible, but joyful. There is so much more to come and we can’t wait to walk alongside you.
It’s time to take back our kitchens, one meal at a time.
Read the rest of the Learning to Make a Home Series
- The Mindset of "Elevated Simplicity
- A Simpler Way to Decorate a Beautiful Home
- How to Simplify Cooking and Baking at Home - You are here
- Simple Routines for a Clean and Organized Home
- Creating a Handmade Home Doesn't Have to Be Difficult
- Why Growing a Garden is Easier Than You Think
