Michael \"Dog3\" Lonergan wrote:

> I *always* follow any baking recipe exactly. Anything else I'm cooking is
> up for grabs; first time or not.

Same here. Most baking requires measuring. You can get away with variations
in cakes but pies and cookies are generally more susceptible to wild
variations of altered. I have enough trouble with consistency in cookies
and pie pastry even with measuring.


> I will usually follow most of a recipe the first time I make it. I'll
> especially do this if the ingredients are expensive. After I've made
> something once I'll tweak it if I need to.
>
> I'm not a big measurer.

I will try to stick close to the recipe, but there are some things that
don't need to be precise. Herbs and spices vary in potency and can be
adjusted. I am not going to cut a whole new carrot for diced carrots if the
recipe calls for a cup and I have only 5/8 cup, or if I have the cup and
there is a half carrot left it's going in. Similarly, onions are added by
numbers, not by cups.

I have a pretty good idea how much salt in my hand is a teaspoon.

Most of the time I am cooking for two, so even if I use recipes they get
automatically reduced.



> Michael
>
> --
> This is how it works in my house. Click the pic to enlarge it:
> http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=42ko0mf
> -remove "foodie" to email