h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Mushroom Stroganoff (Wartime Recipe) - A809660
Author: The Owl and the Pussycat - U201188

Dear Peer,

As a first time poster on h2g2, I'm not really sure where in the Guide this belongs. It is useful information though, and probably interesting to those who like eating. It may also provide not an insignificant amount of nostalgic value for people with more wrinkles than me.

All the best,

The Owl and the Pussycat.

Hello Owl and the Pussycat. There are two types of entry at h2g2 - edited, and non-edited, Non-edited entries can be about anything you like and written in any style. Edited entries however have to follow the Writing-Guidelines

You have the beginnings of an edited entry here, but it needs a good deal of work. For instance, how does one prepare and cook the ingredients? It's really not enough to say "in the traditional way". You will also have to delete the conversation at the end, which although hunorous, would not be acceptable in an edited entry.

If you have a source of similar recipes, perhaps you could include them in an entry about wartime cooking.

You'll also find it useful to write an introduction on your persoanl space. As soon as you do that, one of h2g2's friendly ACEs will come along and officially welcome you

Oh, and I should add that non-edited entries don't have to be posted anywhere - you simply create them, and they reside as a link on your personal space

Huhllo there,

Thanks for getting back to me about this.

I would not hesitate to supply the rest of the recipe if I was allowed! The trouble is that it was offically classified during the war under section 37.d.ii of the 1937 Official Secrets Act. As such it is still held by the MOD and can't be revealed until 2037. I seem to remember that there was a strange ammendment to the Act which stated that recipes involving mushrooms could not be released for much longer than other recipes involving other ingredients (something to do with the popular belief at the time that they gave people telepathic powers).

In defence of the conbersation at the end, I would remark that it is an exact transcript of a real conversation I had with my late mother in March 1942. It also helps put the recipe into the context it was used in.

Whaddayafink?

Hi, Owl and Pussycat!

I think that this entry is in the wrong place in Peer Review! The level of weirdness in it is quite funny, but many people will see the title and expect to find an actual wartime recipe.

If you take this entry out of Peer Review, which is supposed to contain factual entries, and submit it to the Alternative Writing Workshop at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/Writing-Alternative
I think you will find a more suitable place for it. Or you could get in touch with the AGG/GAG team who select entries for their column in The Post (follow the link to The Post from the front page).


Azara

Thanks for the tip. I'll try the 'alternative' route.

Tatty-bye.