Anna N

Have to tell you that I am not up to scratch on pasteurization. I understand the concept and can even read the tables but do I trust any of it? Hmmm. That's when my paranoia kicks in. It would be very helpful if I could trust that meat can safely live in my fridge for as long as I see people here routinely assume it can.

Never occurred to me to bake it in pans! I just might have to give that a try. I am assuming you used the full recipe and 9 x 5 pans?

My attempt at Elizabeth David's Omelette Molière. I am sure she would be horrified that my ineptness resulted in colour. In my defense she also said, "But one of the main points about the enjoyment of food and wine seems to me to lie in having what you want when you want it and in the particular combination you fancy." I fancy a little colour on my omelette.

They were very good but before you even think about it make sure you have a baking dish that you can line with foil or parchment or be prepared to spend some time cleaning the pan!

Maple–balsamic glazed mushrooms with bacon. Adapted from Seriously Delish.

I am not obsessed with polenta and anyone who says I am is just wrong. And I know why the other name for this green vegetable is dinosaur kale. Only the teeth of a dinosaur could possibly break it down. It even challenged the "jaws" of my Thermomix. So there you have it. A purée of kale, a cocktail tomato and a poached egg over some cheesy polenta.

The book is rife with errors of measurement. I made the same bread but followed an adaptation on another website. The bread was delicious and I really must make it again.

It would take much more than a liberal amount of MR to persuade me to spend an hour and a quarter stirring. Without the Instant Pot there would be no polenta in this house! Just saying.

I think many of us have made them this way! The scallions are optional.

Cheesy polenta topped with oyster mushrooms and spinach. This was inspired by a recipe in the Green City Market Cook Book.

Damn. Don't get me wanting something I don't need!

@ninagluck I researched various recipes but none of them struck me as likely to turn out as yours did. Some called for peppers, tomatoes and paprika. Some included a sausage of some sort. But yours looks almost as if it has a custard around the outer edge. Can you just comment on your method of making this Hungarian staple please?

The best laid plans… I had planned on sous viding two duck breasts, two porkchops and a sirloin steak. When my Joule informed me that the duck breasts were done, I faced the reality of no ice! No ice, no ice packs, nada. My icemaker went belly up while I was away on vacation despite that I followed directions and turned it off. So I am chilling the breasts as best I can in running water and trust if I put them in the freezer immediately I will escape a horrible death from whatever nasties might survive my chilling technique. The other meats were put into the freezer and will meet their fate in the sous vide when I solve the ice problem. If I had room in the freezer I could certainly make ice cubes but I don't.

Learning to like avocado. This might be breakfast. Might be lunch. Might be the only meal of the day. Time will tell. Toast, mashed avocado, lime juice, sumac and tomato.

Of course you don't need more knives. I don't need more knives. What has that got to do with anything?

I will forgive you almost anything since you brought to my attention the Elizabeth David book. I am so enjoying reading it.

Unlike @ElsieD, I have yet to meet a focaccia that I like. Yours still looks good.

Honestly, no secret. I'm not the type to hold back. I followed the recipe as it is written. It's not a secret but I certainly did tighten up the "boule" by very carefully tucking it in underneath to "tighten the skin".

Neither a great photograph nor a great execution but this was my first attempt at grilling Halloumi cheese in a grill pan. Every thing was brushed with an olive oil, thyme and garlic mix. My original plan involved the use of my Cuisinart Griddler. Apparently I had forgotten that it needed to be retired as plastic parts were disintegrating on it. Damn. The grill pan is not as roomy nor as "nonstick" as my well used griddler.

I used Robin Hood bread flour which I believe is 13 or 14% Protein content. I can no longer knead by hand so it got five minutes in my Bosch. I think the loaf turned out as it should but that my expectations based only on the photographs were not in line with the recipe. I am certain the term "country loaf" has no meaning of any consequence. But the crumb I find in the "country loaf" I buy stands up well to toppings and fillings, toasts respectably, is not squishy and it can be relatively thinly sliced.

Thanks for the compliments but not nah. It was a very simple recipe. Here. I needed to fool around with the time so I used only 1/2 teaspoon of yeast in the starter and it was in the refrigerator for, give or take, 48 hours. It has a beautiful taste and I would certainly make it again and again but it did not live up to my expectations in terms of crumb. I was after a very close and sturdy crumb resembling that that I can buy in a commercial "country loaf". Not sure how I get there from here. It is a nice fine crumb but not nearly the sturdy crumb I'm looking for.

Damn. I knew I should've dropped that shelf a bit. Not my best effort but all things considered I'm not too disappointed...yet. The recipe promised me the kind of sturdy bread that I have been buying commercially. Until I cut into it only the kitchen gods know if the recipe lived up to expectations.

Toasted brioche, goat cheese, walnuts and roasted grapes.

NEVER.

Yes. I don't often speak up but on this occasion I did tell our server that these were quite unsatisfactory.