cook's profile


Jajam
 
Home Town: Chatham, New Jersey, USA
Living In: Ventura, California, USA
Member Since: Oct. 2004
Cooking Level: Expert
Cooking Interests: Baking, Grilling & BBQ, Mexican, Southern, Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Dessert, Quick & Easy, Gourmet
Hobbies: Gardening, Walking, Music
About this Cook
I'm a retired social worker and grandma. I majored in nutrition in college, so I'm a bit on the "Alton Brown" scientific side. Wish I had his sense of humor.
My favorite things to cook
I love to bake. My hubby works out and begs for more goodies while staying trim. Me...not so energetic. I love all kinds of foods, love experimenting.
My favorite family cooking traditions
My mother was a great cook with a German and English emphasis. She ran a catering business after raising 8 children. I still prefer the old European traditional cooking. Being a California transplant, I also love the casual west coast, but I miss the elegance and tradition of back East.
My cooking triumphs
People usually love my desserts and scratch cakes. We do a progressive dinner each Christmas season, and my friends kidded that I should do all the courses.
My cooking tragedies
Many, but one stands out in my memory. Shortly after I was married and I was still in school,we barely had money to eat. Dinners were often spagetti or rice with no sauce. I made a polenta dish that was layers of polenta and cottage cheese for dinner. It was horrible. My husband still remembers it.
Recipe Reviews 23 reviews
Easy Batter Fruit Cobbler
I made this with 2 heaping cups of nectarines and baked it in a 7" square Corning Ware casserole for 55 minutes. Yummy! It had a very dense, chewy, interestingly delicious "doughy" bottom and center. However, I could see why someone described it as "soggy". My husband exclaimed "Wow, what a great tasting dough!" The top edges had a crisp, buttery crunch. There is something almost strangely addicting about it. This would have more crisp top if baked in a larger, flatter dish.

0 users found this review helpful
Reviewed On: Jul. 5, 2009
2-Step Inside-Out Chicken Pot Pie
5 Stars for such a quick way to serve a nutritious home cooked meal in 20 minutes. Use whatever vegetables you like. Thanks for the comfort food idea.

0 users found this review helpful
Reviewed On: May 15, 2009
Ciabatta Bread
I have baked about one to five loaves of bread a week for 40 years. This is a great loaf of bread. For those who had trouble with the dough being too runny, these suggestions: Use only bread flour as called for in the recipe; AP flour does not absorb as much water. Secondly, measuring flour for bread differs from measuring for cake or cookies (sifted or stirred & fluffed) because bread bakers "feel" the dough while they knead in the flour. Air humidity can also affect the moisture. Just lightly scoop the flour, but if the dough is truly runny, add flour a tablespoon at a time after the first five minutes of kneading until it no longer runny but is still quite wet. Keep in mindd the this bread is meant to spread out into a fairly flat loaf. It's other name is "Italian Slipper Bread." Making bread is a sight & feel process, even in the bread machine.

1 user found this review helpful
Reviewed On: May 14, 2009
 
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