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Your list is quite different from my top 10. Although my cooking is ever evolving, the following remain the front-runners:

Rosemary
Oregano
Basil
Fennel seed
Cumin
Tarragon
Salt
Cinnamon
Cayenne
Chili powder

I added too much ginger to a cranberry sauce recipe (no thanks to Martha Stewart). I tried everything except adding more cranberries because grocery the stores were closed. By everything I mean I went from adding orange juice, to adding sweetener, to adding red wine, to adding balsamic vinegar, to adding curry powder... (the curry, of course, in a nod to curry and ginger working so so well together in Indian dishes)... and at this point I can't remember what else. Hubby managed to find a local convenience store and we wound up serving Ocean Spray as part of Christmas dinner.

So is there a way to bail out a dish with too much ginger added, other than adding another batch of the main ingredient?

Here's a game my husband and I have used at dinner parties for years and it's worked beautifully.

First, describe the game so people know the rules:

1) the topic of discussion must be 100% agreed upon by everyone at the table,
2) each person at the table will, in turn, have a chance to comment about the topic,
3) there are two rounds for each topic, going from one person to the next in the same order each round (we always go clockwise, starting with my husband)
4) no one is allowed to interrupt the person who's speaking,
5) each person can speak as long as they like on the topic but a general agreement of around 5 minutes at most is suggested),
6) anyone can "pass" if they don't want to comment,
7) the second round is to give each person a chance to refine their earlier comments or to respond the the comments of another.

Kicking it off with a non-polarizing topic is key. Try something like "What career would you have chosen if you knew in your teens what you now know?" You'll learn a lot about the people at the table and will likely have some good laughs. Be sure to start it off though: some people can be nervous until they see how easy this can be.

My husband usually introduces the game, and has everyone vote on suggested topics using their forks (tongs up = yes, tongs down = no). Once the first topic is completed, the group generally wants to do more of it. It's a great way to give everyone a chance to speak and be heard, and it's a great way to break the ice.

Whatever you decide to do though, make it a high priority to enjoy yourself!

Good luck and have fun!!

In all fairness, this is an all-time favorite meal, so the "death-row" theme doesn't really matter to me. Here 'tis:

Rack of lamb (medium rare, coated with dijon, garlic, rosemary, and corn meal)
Mint jelly
Roasted red potatoes (EVOO, garlic, rosemary, saffron, salt)
Curried carrots
Steamed green beans tossed in butter

Creme Brulee or Flan

A bottle of Santa Margarita Pinot Grigio (although if following the death-row theme, make it two bottles)

Rachael Ray... probably a nice enough girl, but not a chef. Not even sure she's a good cook. And Emeril, because anyone who adds oil to a cajun catfish recipe is overpowering the brilliance of the fish itself (season and broil for spectacular results).

Cut the avocado lengthwise -- around the pit, so you have to halves. Cut each half in half, so you now have 4 quarters. With a ripe avocado, the pit will fall out during the process. With your fingers, peel the skin away.

To keep from browning, keep air from contacting it. Several methods for this are already covered here.

I've turned toward cooking even more Mediterranean foods (lots of veggies with lovely herbs). And, when done right, home cooked Indian food is not only fabulous and healthy, it's WAY affordable.

I'm stunned! It seems only one other poster here knows the incomparable delight of fresh baked warm biscuits, cut in half, each half slathered with butter and then doused with maple syrup. (There's no way to limit this to just one biscuit.)

I've been eating biscuits this way since I was a kid. It was introduced to our lives by a housekeeper/nanny who grew up in the south and -- God bless her -- she could cook a biscuit like no one else.

Sorry... I can't begin to imagine a biscuit any other way. I mean, why bother?

Cutting the cost: if your grocery store sells "end bits" of cheese, buy a package with all white bits -- chances are it will include gouda, provolone, jack, and others, for a whole lot less than it would cost to buy separately.