Comments on: Food Experiments Gone Awry: My Very Own Kitchen Nightmares

By: Casandra Slatkin

Casandra Slatkin — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 05:07:44 +0000

Could not thank you fully for the posts on your site. I know you placed a lot of time and energy into these and hope you know how deeply I appreciate it. I hope I am able to do the same for another individual at some time.

By: xina

xina — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 19:44:44 +0000

I used to experiment all the time and came up with some pretty horrible food. I finally learned to follow a recipe and now that I can make food that everyone can eat (!) I’ve learned about spices the cooking temps and cooking time that really make a difference in cooking. I can’t use a lot of salt, so I have to rely on other spices. I’ve got 3 shelves(big shelves) of spice and always have fresh parsley, cilantro and a rosemary bush in my window. I enjoy cooking, having a glass of wine and making something that earns some oohs and ahs. Better than the other reactions I used to get!

By: Missie

Missie — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 05:08:34 +0000

Linnie, this video shows a simple way to prepare spaghetti squash — you might want to give it a try.

http://www.graspr.com/videos/Spaghetti-Squash-101

By: dick

dick — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 21:11:11 +0000

When we first married, my wife decided to impress me by making an aspic of some kind with chicken as the base. It was a vile green color, stiff as an icicle; each slice looked most like fake chuck-up.
Needless to say, I ate it–once.

Took me a while to figure out what was wrong with the cake recipe. I actually contacted Fleischman’s and asked if there was a typo in the recipe. I eventually figured out it had too many eggs. Much, much later, Fleischman’s issued a new pamphlet with a corrected recipe; they had reduced the liquid used in starting the yeast and added a 1/2 cup of flour.
Wasn’t nearly as tasty, though. The crumbs made great cottage pudding.

By: AARPat

AARPat — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 16:23:01 +0000

I found a recipe while I was pregnant with our first child that was supposed to be a Middle East favorite. Since I grew up in Nebraska, a Middle East favorite sounded very exotic, so I decided to make it. It was mashed bananas and pork chops–made together like a casserole. Talk about ugly!

We’re still married–38 years later.

By: LinnieGayl

LinnieGayl — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 15:32:03 +0000

Jean….hmmm…that’s definitely different. Although I will admit to adding Worcestershire sauce to many, many things.

By: Jean AAR

Jean AAR — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 01:48:05 +0000

Tinned tuna plus mayo, then cook it in a saucepan with soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Eat with pickles on toast.

Don’t ask me what I was thinking, because I sincerely have no idea.

By: LeeB.

LeeB. — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 21:18:17 +0000

Well I don’t experiment at all with recipes but I thank everyone for sharing their stories. Wiping tears from my eyes because the stories made me laugh.

By: Missie

Missie — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 21:15:15 +0000

I’ve done up a veggie lasagna — but with noodles — that’s pretty tasty, too. It has lots of slicing and dicing and sauteeing of fresh veg, so it’s more time consuming than a regular lasagna, so I don’t make it as often as I do other versions.

Carrot, zucchini, and yellow squash would definitely be tasty with marinara sauce, too.

By: LinnieGayl

LinnieGayl — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 16:42:09 +0000

Missie, interesting about the zucchini failures. I’ll have to admit I’m a traditionalist with lasagna, and have only ever tried it with noodles. I have experimented with substituting veggies instead of spaghetti to serve with marinara. Instead of the spaghetti squash that so many people try (and I’m a complete failure at), I julienne carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash, either saute or steam them, and then top them with the marinara sauce. I really like it, and find it quite satisfying.