Well the Lemon Drizzle Cake turned out to be delicious. I'll definately be making that again in future.
The recipe book that I have been getting all these recent recipes from is Grandma's Best Recipes bought for me by some friends at work.
I do appreciate the gift, but I have to take issue with Grandma over the one I'm trying at the minute. I don't appreciate recipe books in which the authors assume the reader knows things about cooking they don't know. As far as I am concerned, instructions should be simple, honest and direct. I don't mind the use of cooking words I don't understand - by the power of wikipedia, the dictionary and greyskull, I can figure it out. What I do object to is instructions that when followed accurately cannot produce the outcome inferred in the book. This shows either ignorance or a presumption the reader will know to follow certain unprinted steps.
Case in point: In the recipe for Beef Stew with Herb Dumplings the reader is asked to heat one tablespoon of oil in a frying pan, and fry two chopped onions and two chopped garlic cloves. Fair enough. Then you have to remove the onion and garlic with a slotted spoon, and then brown 1kg of beef in the remaining oil. What remaining oil?? Slotted spoons are handy when there is a lot of liquid to leave behind, but even a novice cook will know that 1tbsp of olive oil will not leave much oil in the pan, slotted spoon or not!
Furthermore, when the beef is browned, you have to sprinkle on 2tbsp plain flour and 'stir well to prevent lumps.' Prevent lumps?? How are you supposed to prevent the flour from clumping up when you add it to a pan with big chunks of beef and a dribble of oil?
I just get the feeling that when Grandma practised, there was a lot more liquid in her pan. What was this missing liquid? Was it more oil, or something else?
With all the effort I have gone to, the rather dry beginnings of my creation better not spoil the ending Grandma!
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