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Please go out and purchase the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Book and the Williams-Sonoma book. You'll be set forever. I usually start with the B&J sweet cream base (it uses raw eggs) and take it from there. My favorites are Cherry Garcia, sweet potato pie and coconut. Cherry Garcia is in the B&J book. For sweet potato pie, just add sweet potato pie filling until the ice cream turns a nice peachy color. For coconut, I add coconut extract, coconut milk and toasted coconut. I'm sorry I don't have more precise directions -- I never measure.

Hummus! Hummus! and more Hummus!

12-in cast iron skillet w/ cover or an enameled cast iron Dutch oven. My aunt found a great Dutch oven at Target. You'll find it easier to cook delicate things that stick (like eggs or fish) in the plain cast iron. You just can cook a lot of acidic stuff in it. With the enameled Dutch oven, you'll need to use a little more oil. However, you can use it for soups and stews w/o having to worry about acidic foods. Cleaning it will also be a lot easier.

Unicorn Magnum for pepper. My salt mill rarely gets used, so I can't provide a qualified recommendation.

I promise you won't regret getting the FP first. It's so much more versatile.

I echo the well-stocked pantry theme. If you are starting with bare cubbards, try to buy a few staples each week. On $50 a week, which is my budget by default, I do big pots of stuff that can be portioned out over the week - red beans and rice, black-eyed peas and rice, black bean soup, butternut squash soup, chili, spaghetti, etc. I can eat breakfast at any time of the day, so I always have eggs around. I'm loving pasta cabonara right now, which gives me another way to make breakfast for dinner.

I don't eat red meat or pork. I buy my poultry and fish in bulk from Costco. If a warehouse club isn't an option, look to the bulk meat packages in the grocery store. I buy frozen veggies from Trader Joe's, most are less than $2 a bag with five servings per bag. (Working with a budget really helps you understand portion control.) I do incorporate whole wheat and brown grains where possible, so that I can feel fuller on less.

When you first start off, you may have to sacrifice as you build your stores up. Eventually, you'll be able to eat the way you want (as long as you don't mind cooking.)

Good luck!

My mixer, Old Faithful, is a KitchenAid Professional model. I bought it right before KA revamped the line -- I got it for $220 at Costco, but it has less power than the current Artisans.

I wanted something from the Professional series because of the bowl-lift and metal attachments. I liked the fact the bowl-lift version looked like what I saw in commercial kitchens. My Aunt's Artisan is year's younger than mine, gets much less use and she's already looking for another plastic paddle.

The attachments alone make KA the only model worth considering. I speak from experience: the ice cream maker, pasta roller and cutters, can opener and meat grinder are wonderful. You can do without the pasta plates. The food strainer is cool too.

With the pasta plates (and I think I got them on clearance at Target) came these wonderful clamps that keep the mixer from walking across the counter. (They either came with the pasta plates or the pasta roller and cutters.) They clamp to each of the pegs the bowl sits on.

KA's customer service on the mixers rocks. My model was a display model and was missing the hub cover; KA sent me on for free. Later, I stripped the screw that holds attachments into the hub; KA sent me a free replacement. I think I was one of the earlier people to get the ice cream attachment or maybe the first one to call about a discrepancy in the instructions. The rep sorted everything out for me.

If I had it to do all over again, and I probably won't in this lifetime; I'd still get a KitchenAid Professional model.

I brine all poultry. I generally don't use a thermometer to tell when chicken is done. When it's ready, the juices will run clear. I'm also a believe in the Paula Deen method -- shake the bird's hand (wing and drumstick)! If they wiggle easily, the bird is done.

Here's my roasted chicken recipe:

@stratusgd's brick chicken idea is a great option. I use Tyler Florence's recipe.

Good luck!

Roasted chicken and roasted broccoli are my picks. Until you know him better, be conservative and plan a full meal. You'd rather him be overwhelmed than underwhelmed.

@tenille10, Please let us know how they turn out. I still have pie crust moments, so I have to live vicariously through you.

Chocolate covered cherry martini

http://nujoikitchendiary.blogspot.com/2007/12/lush-life_31.html

I highly recommend the OXO scale. I've had mine for a few weeks and I love it!!!! It's very accurate and precise. It measures individual grams. (My previous scale measured in 5 gram increments.)