Holiday Cooking Disaster Thread

[Broomjockey]

Parsley?

*snicker* Curious myself, I went and looked just now. Turns out, it looks like basil because it IS basil.

[Dave1982]

Actually, the cleanup of the stuck sugar was pretty easy, as 99% of it dissolved under an onslaught of hot water. The rest was easily cleaned off.

[Fire_on_High]

Kitchen disaster from my childhood...obviously, my mom's handiwork and not mine.

We only had one working heating element in the oven, but she's used to this and knows how to work around it. Frankly, we've only had one coil working at any given time for much longer overall than having em both.

So...Thanksgiving, turkey's in the oven...and the remaining coil decides to cry uncle. We had a very kindly neighbor who knew the guy who ran an oddball little hardware and junk store and coaxed him to open just long enough to get replacements.

Yay for 11 PM Thanksgiving dinner!

[42_42_42]

*snicker* Curious myself, I went and looked just now. Turns out, it looks like basil because it IS basil.

Basil in mashed potatoes. That is a new one for me. Now parsley and potatoes, go hand in hand, as do chives. I will have to try out this new potato and herbage combination of yours.

[Broomjockey]

Basil in mashed potatoes.

Keep in mind, it's only a *little* bit, and these are instant, so I put everything in the water before adding the potatoes. Flavour goes around better that way.

[42_42_42]

Keep in mind, it's only a *little* bit, and these are instant, so I put everything in the water before adding the potatoes. Flavour goes around better that way.

Instant mashed potatoes?!? quel horreur

Just joking. I happen to like instant mashed, especially when I'm having stomach upset. Hubby only eats 'em under duress, however.

[Jester]

I happen to like instant mashed potatoes just fine, as I grew up on them. (Mom made them a lot, because, let's face it, they were easier than the real deal.) That being said, and despite my fondness for them, instant mashed potatoes do NOT belong anywhere within shouting disatnce of a thread about cooking. Especially if we are discussing cooking mashed potatoes!

My sister as a teenager had NO sense of time or how long things should be microwaved.

Things should never be microwaved. Ick.


Well, add a new disaster to the list. I was making three dishes for my friend's holiday party tonight. The black bean and corn salsa: perfect. The pasta salad that I got the recipe for here on CS.com: wonderful. The tropical cranberry sauce that I've made tons of times, and that happens to be the easiest recipe in the world: liquid.

How did I screw this one up? The shit's been in the fridge all night, and yet still has not set in any way. Bloody hell! The only thing I can think of is that I added too much fruit (mandarin oranges and pineapple), or that I added them too early. I have never had a problem with this dish. Motherfucker!

[dalesys]

The only thing I can think of is that I added too much fruit (mandarin oranges and pineapple), or that I added them too early.

I remember my mother saying that raw pineapple has an enzyme that digests protein (gelatin). Could that be the problem?

[AccountingDrone]

Basil in mashed potatoes. That is a new one for me. Now parsley and potatoes, go hand in hand, as do chives. I will have to try out this new potato and herbage combination of yours.

get ye to a grocery, buy one or 2 tennis ball sized golden yukon potatoes per person, a tiny shaker jar of ground bay leaf, a small amount of fresh thyme and some sour cream.

Boil yon potatoes in their skins until they are done. Take them out. Oil up a cookie sheet with olive oil. Take each potato out, place it on the cookie sheet, and taking a flat potato masher or flat item like the washed bottom of a wine bottle gently smash the potatoes flat, about half an inch thick or so. Brush with more olive oil, gently sprinkle with freshly cracked white pepper, a tiny dusting of the ground bay leaves and pop in the oven to broil gently until the tops are getting golden and crunchy. Mix some of the fresh thyme into the sour cream and blorp decoratively on top of each potato.

We make it with snips of fresh basil, fresh thyme, fresh chives ... parsley is a bit bland.

[42_42_42]

... parsley is a bit bland.

Not if it's fresh from your herb garden!

Jester: The microwave is great for heating/reheating things (i.e. leftovers), but, yes, used as a primary cooking device it should not be. Ever had chicken cooked in the microwave? Ugh. RUBBER.

My sister has fortunately progressed from a horrible cook to a mediocre cook. She does manage to feed her kids. If it weren't for pre-cooked frozen foods and hamburger helper, I don't know what her poor kids would eat. Good thing she lives with my parents.

Generally when I visit my folks, I end up doing most of the cooking. I've actually had to invest in kitchen tools to keep at my parents' house. Basic things like a whisk (b/c my mom cannot make gravy) that only get trotted out when I'm cooking. It's a bit of a pain b/c the kitchen there is so unorganized, overflowing with canned goods everywhere, etc. My nephews have started requesting certain things for me to cook when I visit. The 3 year old asked that I make pancakes this past weekend. I had to bring my own flour (my mom uses pancake mix, I use White Lily for pancakes and biscuits) and buy buttermilk when I got there, but make pancakes I did (teddy bear shaped ones for the 3 and 1 year olds).

[Jester]

I remember my mother saying that raw pineapple has an enzyme that digests protein (gelatin). Could that be the problem?

Unlikely, as I used canned pineapple, and I have put pineapple chunks in my cranberry sauce before. I really think the problem was just too much fruit. I should have remembered from the past that I use either a can of mandarin oranges, or a can of pineapple chunks, or half a can of each. I, like a dope, used a full can of each.

That being said, people still loved it, despite its not quite jelled status, and my friend's mom even asked me for the recipe, over either of my other two dishes!

[1756GR2]

Onion....PIES?

Oh, please, by all that is holy under the sky of the food gods, tell me you have and are willing to provide the recipe for such yummy sounding treats!!!!!

Indeed I shall! I've done a quick type-up just for you (and anyone else who might be tempted) and flung it up on a friend's website: http://deborahspantry.com/OnionPye.htm It's a 1747 recipe. I need to find my notes to confirm the oven temperature - it may be 375, not 400.

[1756GR2]

Found the notes faster than I'd expected - 400 or 425 degrees. It was hard to remember because we usually cook and bake by a hearth or pit fire, so no thermometers.

But do use a deep dish and put a lipped baking sheet under it. Please!

[ShinyGreenApple]

Tomorrow's going to be very. very interesting. I put my last batch of peanut butter cookies in the oven and checked them after ten minutes to discover a melty, gooey mess. Guess what!

We are out of propane.

[Jester]

Indeed I shall! I've done a quick type-up just for you ...

I feel special.

1 lb. (4 or 5 medium) onions

Am I the only one that looked at this and thought,

Seriously. I don't know about where you are, but where I am, 4 large or 5 medium onions are going to be WAY more than a pound. Of course, to be fair, our large onions down here are pretty honkin' big! But still......