Visit your library and borrow a child's first cook book or something like that, they have simple instructions and great pictures. Have fun and (as I tell my household) eat with your mouth (taste) not with your eyes!

I teach catering at my local college and student cookbooks tend to require a lot of little bits of different ingredients, expensive and (being a mother of young children) also time consuming! My favourite cookbook, which is easy to follow with pictures etc is by Mary Berry, Complete Cookbook. Lots of easy and nice recipes in there! GOOD LUCK!

Find a four-ingredient cookbook. Everything is made with four or less ingredients and it will give you a good idea about what ingredients go well together, since you won't have a bunch of other ingredients getting in the way.

If you live in the UK buy BBC Good Food Magazine which is published monthly. It has a section near the front which includes receipes that have no more than five ingredients. Also Lindsay Bareham's Just One Pot is a book where all the receipes can be made in one pot. Great if you have limited cooking facilities. Nigel Slater's 30 minute cook is good. Delia Smiths Complete Cookery Course goes through the basics. Hope this helps