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

Powdered sugar might be a good idea next time. The recipe called for caster sugar, which I didn't have, so I put some ordinary sugar in the blender. Works well enough. I also used raw organic sugar rather than everyday white sugar. I saw cooking temperatures that varied from 300F+ to as low as 180, and times that varied from an hour to two hours.

I'll say it again, as if it needs repeating: There are lies, damn lies, statistics, and sodding recipes.

I'm just going to have to try again. Oh dear, how sad, never mind

Cool old Guy not knowing the physical details
"Just noticed once the powdered sugar seems to make the egg white to stiff up while chrystal sugar seems to act like fat, not stiffening it at all. for the abuse of a certain smiley. They are n my fingers as they appear in my head . . . (non english and other excuses)"

Chicken liver paté.

Because I love paté and because chicken livers are cheap and because it makes an easy breakfast at 6.15 am and because I've never made it before. But I will again

With home made bread?

Absolutely Organic too. Both the bread and the paté.

Buttermilk pie. This one, specifically http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/01/double-crust-buttermilk-custard-pie-recipe.html

I understand they're normally made without a top crust, rather like a custard tart, which it it pretty much is really, replacing ordinary milk with buttermilk.

I have to say that I'm extremely dubious about that pastry recipe. As far as I can make out the flour to fat ratio is not far off 1:1 (20 tablespoons of butter is two and a half sticks, which is 10 oz, with 12½ oz of flour), whereas it's normally 2:1 (half as much fat as flour). I made it the previous day and left it in the fridge overnight. so it had plenty of time to rest, and it did indeed roll out without any signs of cracking, but it has shrunk during baking more than my pastry normally does, which might be because I had to knead it quite a bit.

Being a custard tart I'd also have baked it in a water bath, which they haven't specified in the recipe, and I'll let Alton Brown explain why http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_1tiKoLGvk#t=15m05s If I decide to make this again (and if it tastes as good as it smells I definitely will - I added some allspice to it as well ), I might forgo the top crust and employ the water bath method.

Oh, and the reason I made it in the first place is because I have the best part of of a quart of buttermilk left over from something I made a few weeks ago. And for the life of me I can't recall what that was.

It came out a little runny in the middle, but it's deelishus I'll be making one of these again, oh yes

Pigs trotter stock/jelly.

For my

And it jellied up real good

Cemitas http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/05/cemitas-mexican-saseme-seed-sandwich-buns-recipe.html

I'd never even heard of these before, let alone made them, but they've just come out of the oven and they look exactly like the picture Smell pretty good too. I may have one or two of them for supper with a little something on when I get back from the boozer later this evening

The one thing I hate about a lot of recipes is that they tend to assume that everyone has a food processor and/or a stand mixer. I have a stick blender, a regular blender with a burnt out motor (so no regular blender) and a regular hand-held electric mixer. And no or space to put such small appliances anyway...

I think that might be because of the target audience of their advertisers, or perhaps the audience they want their advertisers to think they have. I have a stand mixer and a food processor (which is currently out of service because it needs a new blade ) because I decided to get both of those when I had the cash, but no hand-held electric mixer, which is something I've been meaning to get for a while and which would be really handy for creaming butter and sugar. And I love my stick blender

The cemitas are delicious, by the way

They look brilliant - I'd love to try them right away! But - a half a cup of sesame seeds? That sounds an awful lot!

You can sprinkle as many on as you wish

They look the business - I love sesame. Occasionally I get a jar of tahini, but never cook or make anything with it. I just end up sporadically having spoonfuls from the jar.

This could be interesting.

I'm making sage and onion stuffing to go with my shoulder of pork later today. I have some juniper berries in a jar with my other spices and herbs, and I understand they lose their potency more quickly than most other other whole spices, so I've ground some of of them and added the powder.

Sage and onion and gin stuffing

Hands off, Paxo, it was my idea!

"other other", "of of"

Marmalade bread http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2011/04/marmalade-bread-recipe.html

This one falls into the category of lies, damn lies, statistics, bloody recipes, and how to make house-bricks.