To begin, I first downloaded the Good and Cheap cookbook. It's free from Leanne Brown's kickstarter site at http://www.leannebrown.ca/cookbooks. Next I began reading through the book. I skimmed through the recipes but stopped to read the advice boxes scattered throughout.
I decided the easiest way to start was to just pick some recipes and go from there. I scrolled to the dinner section and began looking for something simple. The first recipe was Creamy Zucchini Fettuccini. I knew I could boil pasta so this seemed simple enough. I went through and made a list of ingredients for this meal. Next, I moved on to choosing a breakfast recipe for the following morning. The first recipe was Tomato Scrambled Eggs and I thought that sounded good, however I wasn't sure whether my boyfriend would like it, so I also chose the alternate recipe of Berry Oatmeal. I added these ingredients to the list then decided to through and find out exactly what I would need to buy and made a shopping list.
I will admit, having never really cooked, I wasn't sure what some of the stuff was or what some of the phrases meant so I took to google for anything that I was unsure about. I found that there are tons of places to that offer answers to basic cooking questions! I didn't feel as dumb for not knowing what exactly "cream" was or where to find it or what kind to get. I'm now feeling pretty confident that I'll be able to handle this challenge as long as google is on my side!
So that's it. I've got my recipes. I've got my shopping list. Now I just have to buy the ingredients tomorrow and get started!