If you have bought from Ivan a kitchen and cooking tools then you can start cooking right away. Also some books will help you forge weapons, accessories and even make your own potions if you upgrade your house.
get hammer and then go mining, esp in cremans cave, where i got my lvl 60 ruby even though with low hammer skill
(and for some silly reasons that i cant remember, i saved that ruby in my shelf until recently, spring 2nd year)
or plant ton of strawberries
its only hard in the beginning, after that, it's pretty easy to get money