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Why Recipes Are Getting Dumbed Down

Toronto Star food editor Susan Sampson on how recipes are becoming longer and more and more detailed-oriented because people know less and less about what to do in the kitchen: Martin recalls sharing with office mates a recipe for chocolate cake. Taken from The Perfect Recipe by Pamela Anderson, it was, as Martin recalls, almost as easy as a mix but 20 times as good. She got an email back from a young woman who said the cake seemed "wrong." It turns out the woman had never experienced anything but cake-mix cake."You cannot build enough into your recipes to anticipate that," Martin says.The home cook is an insecure creature. A recipe may be unclear and the result unappetizing, but a...

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Post a Comment | Posted by Lia Bulaong, March 6, 2007 at 4:14 PM
Tagged: cookbooks, cooking technique, recipes

In Praise of Braise

In Praise of Braise: "When done with the proper liquids (stocks or wine) and the right aromatics (root vegetables and herbs), braising carries more flavor than boiling or stewing and doesn't dry out or burn food the way roasting can." Good short history of braising plus four recipes; I especially liked the Braised Guinness Stout Short Ribs and Anthony Bourdain's Coq Au Vin....

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Post a Comment | Posted by Lia Bulaong, February 9, 2007 at 10:26 AM
Tagged: braising, cooking technique