Martha Stewart recipes -- What's DL's opinion?

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I've always been a Martha fan, but it's true that many of them don't turn out well. No idea why that is.

Watching her TV show, I'd have to say that what she does seems right and I've tried a couple of those which turned out really well. I'd put her recipes above , say, Ina Garten's.

I've tried several MS recipes, from entrees to appetizers to desserts and all have flopped.

Most recent one I tried was a bread recipe. It sucked. Too dense.

I've only tried a few of her recipes but they always worked fine, though overall are kind of bland. There have been some roasted chicken recipes I really liked, though.

I’ve done some of her recipes and most have come out good.

No complaints here.

It might also depend on your level of expertise.

Here's one of the chicken recipes I liked, though I made it without carrots.

Her guacamole recipe from her now defunct "Everyday Food" magazine is perfection; it's my go-to guac recipe and people always devour it at parties.

This is not a food blog, fatty.

I like Ina Garten recipes better for the most part. It’s been years but I found Stewart’s website to be glitchy and annoying to use and then the results were surprisingly blah.

I will try the above guacamole recipe.

I spent a fortune on the ingredients, followed every last detail of the recipe, and it tasted like weeds on broiled cheese and crackers which it actually sort of was.

Everyday Food's recipes are great.

Martha is a basic bitch. I never understood how someone so ordinary with such basic taste became so rich, famous and respected. Her recipes are OK but nothing special

It sounds like many of her recipes flop outright. How strange is that? I think of DLers as having better cooking skills than the average person, so I wouldn't attribute flops to a lack of expertise. They lowest rated one I've come across with most comments is "perfect hard boiled eggs" with a 3.2 and heated discussion. Boiling eggs!

Aren't recipes run through a test kitchen and perfected and then a cookbook editor is supposed to finalize what goes into print? (I assume a lot of them are from books)

I love Martha and what she has done for culinary culture.

That said, I've been very disappointed with many of her recipes and their abundance of OCD insanity.

It seems as though everything is as complex as possible, using as many pots/pans/machines/methods and as time-consuming as possible, with middling-to-good results. She really should have someone simplify the recipes and release a book/e-book called MARTHA SIMPLIFIED or something. I can only imagine inexperienced amateurs would find cooking a total time-suck and quit before they started based on so many of her recipes.

If you look at her recipes online, the average rating is about 3 out of 5. That's pretty bad. And when Im looking for a recipe I definitely check hers out to see how badly it's rated, read the comments and then go somewhere else. I don't trust her. Also, everything I've purchased of hers from Macy's is below par in quality. She got paid and doesn't care anymore.

They're mostly underwhelming.

Go fuck yourself with an eggplant R10, then suck on it.

She must be doing something right.

She has a line of clothing, a line of home and gardening tools, ,( she's quite the handywoman), And also, gourmet foods, and cooking and bakeware.

Love her. She's been a regular on PBS for years.

Well, for one of the most important meals of the year (thanksgiving) I used her turkey recipe and it comes out fabulously.

Yes, it’s involved (wine and butter soaked cheesecloth) but the results are worth it.

Martha’s re pies are a mixed bag. Some are good, some not.

I have had better luck with Epicurious.

Recently I've been trying many of Trisha Yearwood's recipes on Food Network and they haven't disappointed me yet. The braided meatloaf is very easy and wonderful. I add a few tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce to the meat, though.

Martha's guacamole recipe is missing one key step, in my opinion: mash down the lime peel into the juice. This expresses the lime oil from the peel, and adds a great deal of flavor to the finished product. You want to get as much of the lime oil as you can.

Otherwise her recipe is fine. But I never add tomatoes to my guacamole because they tend to make it watery and you lose the creamy texture.

R25 remove the seed and their membrane and it helps with the texture

K.

Ive tried several MS recipes and have been very pleased with the results.

The best website for recipes that are surprisingly simple and unbelievably unique, especially for vegetarians, is 101 Cookbooks by Heidi Swenson. Incredible.

I cannot recommend it highly enough. It may take a leap of faith to try some of these flavor combinations, but the results have been 100% amazing so far for me (and I've made dozens).

They're generally require more effort than Ina's (whose recipes involve plopping GOOD ingredients into a bowl); Martha's require first separating, then beating, then folding, etc., And they're also less intense on flavor than Ina's. All of them seem like they were dreamed up by employees -- for better or worse -- than something that's been tried and had any potential sticking points removed by an our beloved obese Jewess frau. Does anyone really have 32 different mac-n-cheese recipes? Ina seems like she just has a couple of well-trodden ones.

That being said I've not made a HUGE number of her things, but they do seem not so highly rated. Even, curiously, on the echo chamber that one would think her own website would be. It's one thing for actual products sold at Sears and made in China to be junk, but no reason a recipe should be.

I did, as I mentioned on another thread make Ina's chicken, lemon, arugala bread salad a month ago and it was a disaster! Had to throw it out; had no dinner that night. But that's a first for her. I did like Martha's chicken salad recipe but I've gone off it recently after I put in too much lemon last time.

Alton Brown's recipes have never disappointed me.

I saw her cook paella and it was the most ridiculous thing ever cooked for TV

Martha's Creamy Celery Soup is excellent for using up that head of celery you had to buy because you needed one or two stalks of celery for an earlier recipe. (I SO wish grocery stores would let you buy one stalk of celery like you can buy one carrot.) Also, her Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are fantastic, so fantastic that I almost never make them because I'll eat them all.

R24, I hope that tastes better than it looks...

Every day food recipes worked because others wrote and food tested them.

Most of Martha's recipes from her cookbooks do not. I have to tweak all of them to get them to turn out.

I'm guessing she doesn't food test them like they do at America's Test Kitchen.

But I love her anyway.

The recipes in her Cooking School book are excellent. They don’t need tweaking. However a recipe is just a guide and should be tweaked or adapted to suit individual needs.

I love Martha's heart shaped coconut cake.

And like another poster said her roast turkey is excellent. So is the smoked Easter ham.

I've never had an issue with Martha's recipes failing, but I'm an experienced cook. Most of them seem pretty straightforward in terms of flavor, but they don't say much about technique, so maybe that's the issue.

Ina Garten's tend to have a fair amount of fat in them, so I'm sure they taste great, but I tend to cook lighter foods at home.

Another experienced cook here. Martha's baking recipes always work; Ina's don't. Use Ina for main course and Martha for desserts.

My partner won't let me make Ina's baked shrimp scampi recipe anymore even after I cut the butter down by half.

Maybe it's because he's Jewish, R40. Make him a baked gefilte casserole instead.

The idiot goy at R41 has a severe reading impediment. I'm not sure if he will be able to figure out what it is.

I've tried dozens of Martha's recipes and they've all turned out really well. At two dinner parties my guests ate every single thing. I don't think they are overly involved and fussy (requiring many, many steps) as America's Test Kitchen. They are crazy

I have noticed that her recipes are rated lower than other website recipes are. But other recipe websites have shitty recipes that are rated 5 out of 5 stars and the food is fair (3 out of 5)

I don't like America's Test Kitchen either. Exactly 5/8s cup of tarragon? What if I can't find it? Why do I need three cake tins and twelve bowls for a birthday cake? I cook in a kitchen not a science lab. If I have some leftovers they go in too and it's a new dish.

That's true -- over the last couple of years I've seen a lot of mediocre recipes rated highly. I have to assume websites fudge their ratings so that it looks good on the snippet that shows on Google search results.

I learned to cook from certain cookbooks before the internet appeared in my life. One of them was Martha Stewart's Entertaining, which was mostly influential in terms of showing me how food could look when you finish cooking it. Most of the recipes I used were for baking, and I never had a problem with anything in Entertaining. I made a wedding cake just like the one in the book with no problem.

Other good recipes were for appetizers/hors d'oeuvres and pie and tart crusts. The only failure I ever had was a creme brulee tart from her Pies & Tarts book that failed to set. Otherwise, everything was flawless.

I've never really consulted the internet as a cooking source the way I used cookbooks. I guess I'm just old.

Oh, and one of my favorite recipes of all time is Martha's for Macaroni and Cheese 101 (that *is* on the internet). Oh, and her creme caramel recipe in The Martha Stewart Cookbook.

She has a great recipe for boiling water.

I love her recipe for Asian fried chicken sandwich with Asian slaw and Go Chu Jang mayo.

My family made these when I was a teenager. It was so fun and all of them turned out really well.

I guess it was technically a Michel Richard recipe that she just presented, but as far as I have seen, she mostly sto—er, she featured legit chefs’ recipes and occasionally made her own Polish pierogies, etc.

Martha's recipes from the 80s/90s were the gold standard - she was a lot more involved in that part of her business/ brand then. Once she started delegating the pieces out and then after she got out of jail & launched her horrible corporate magazine website the quality of the recipes went way down. Use the older books & magazine articles - pre-2001 recipes were amazing & fabulous! I still love her and will never forget seeing her in HayDay market in Westport in the very early 90s berating a young clerk for not having quail available that day.

Martha’s recipes have long been criticized, practically from the beginning of her career. None of this is new. Keep in mind that she really started as a caterer/party planner, and not as a trained chef. And that in many instances, appearance takes priority over taste in her recipes.

In my own personal experience, I have found her recipes and general cooking advice to be very hit and miss — many recipes are perfectly fine, others need tweaking, while others are complete failures.

Dear Homosexuals of DataLounge:

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Regards,

When her first book came out in the 80s, a large number of corrections had to be made in subsequent editions because of all the complaints.

Martha had not kitchen tested the recipes, so they were riddled with errors and came out badly.

I would have thought she learned her lesson, since she was so ridiculed then.

But maybe not.

R53 Martha sells appearances to the broadest audiences for the sake of moving lots of merchandise. My parents bought her branded bedding and curtains at Macy’s and KMart way back when; the sheets were not the correct size for their mattress, and curtains that were supposed to be the same lengths varied by up to six inches per panel. My mom never would have bought curtains at friggin KMart except that Stewart established such a reputation as a hard-assed perfectionist that she expected them to be high in quality. Instead, she got what she paid for. Stewart’s products are as durable as a Hollywood set door made of balsa wood.

Her recipes are okay, and they’re rated appropriately. Three to four stars is about what I’d expect most of them to get. Those ratings are from a wide range of people with different capabilities and experiences in the kitchen.

There are some easy recipes, with just a few ingredients but for the most part, they require shopping and preparation before hand. They are not for the 6:00 pm cook, who didn’t have time to go to the store, has two kids watching a loud TV and a husband on his way home from work who expects to eat the second he walks in the door.

Don’t attempt a recipe that you don’t have the time to make properly or have the correct ingredients for, and if it looks too complicated, it probably is. If the recipe doesn’t turn out well, don’t go and give the recipe a low rating and make a stupid comment on the webpage. It is your fault it failed due to ‘changing it up’ and/or not having the time or experience to bake a pork chop.

Go to a blog, find an easy to follow ‘recipe’ and make a nice casserole with things you have in your kitchen or just use Shake & Bake.

I am have made many recipes from Martha Stewart’s “Everyday Food” YouTube channel and they all turn, particularly the baking recipes. Sarah Carey, the carpet muncher editor of Everyday Food, and Thomas Joseph, the pole smoking bottom host of Kitchen Conundrums, are exceptional instructors, who know what they’re doing.

Everyday Food’s Peach Buckle wins raves every time that I bake it.

I've looked at a few of Martha's recipes and it seems like none of them are under 20 ingredients. I think people don't like them because they are a bit more difficult than the average cook can handle.

People are stupid and lazy cooks r57

There’s plenty of MS recipes that have less than 10 ingredients

It know this sounds really stupid, but Martha Stewart's instructions for cooking brown rice produce the best result I've ever gotten. The results are consistent. Of course you vicious queens are rolling your eyes at this, but it is true. She recommends using a good deal less water than most instructions demand. It turns out that she's right.

There's a scene in the biographical television movie, Martha Inc. where Martha (played by Cybill Shepard) is doing a product line launch at K-Mart and one of the customers attending tells her that she tried her recipe for lemon tarts and that they didn't come out right. Martha then bitches her out and accuses her of not knowing how to cook.

As a florist, I must say her WEDDING ideas are ludicrous, esp for bridal bouquets...

R61 wins for gayest comment on this thread!

I saw her making rice Krispies treats on TV. She used something like 4 boxes of R.K. When she dumped it in the pan, there was enough RK to stucco a house, and I figured she'd need a steel press to tamp them down into squares. Naturally, they cut away and, when they came back , they were all tamped down. Don't know how the fuck that happened, but those squares must have been as dense as bricks.

r61 Shut up, Miguel! We know Ina is paying you to post here!

[quote]Naturally, they cut away and, when they came back , they were all tamped down. Don't know how the fuck that happened, but those squares must have been as dense as bricks.

The "real" chef hiding under the counter grabbed the pan and put the proper pan into Martha's hands. I mean, have YOU ever tasted Martha's cooking? How do you know it's any good?

A conscious or subconscious factor in the rating the recipes is the amount of effort it takes to make something (including gathering the specific ingredients).

If a recipe takes ten minutes, one or two bowls and the cost is low and it tastes merely good, people will give it five stars and say they wish they could give it ten.

If a recipe takes 90 minutes to prepare and involves mincing and peeling and a food processor, broiling, roasting, and $15 in fresh herbs alone (nevermind the rest) and a sinkful of dishes and the end product was merely good, it will be rated two or three stars.

I'm not saying it's right or wrong, that's just the way it is. Sorry for the run-on sentences.

R16 WINS!!!

EXACTLY!

I’m also a big fan, but have always thought the same thing.

She sifts the flour for EVERY FUCKING RECIPE!

So many extra steps and extra equipment etc.

Many years ago she had a chef on who made Florentine cookies.

I just made them again last Christmas.

They’re chopped toasted nuts, dried cherries (I use cranberries & cherries) candied fruit etc. then dipped in chocolate (I use milk).

These are the best cookies I’ve ever had.

I have noticed that her recipes are more lowly rated than other sites but I assumed it’s a combination of people expecting a Martha Stewart recipe to be THE BEST and a desire for her to be taken down a peg or two.

I don’t think that the ratings of recipes online can be trusted much regardless. People that would go back and rate a recipe and also leave comments like:

“This recipe is a winner. I did substitute rosemary for thyme because I was out, and I doubled the lemon juice. Also, cut the salt in half because it seemed like way too much and instead of red snapper I used chicken breasts because my famIly doesn’t like fish. Would totally make again!”

I only alter recipes the first time I make them when it's clear that something's up when I'm making it. Like that one with boxes of RK!? How many does that make? I'd probably scale that down by like seventh eights.

Why is Martha Stewart making Rice Krispie treats? That's Ree Drummond's territory.

I wonder if Martha actually even likes cooking? I think she prefers the playing the whole WASP hostess thing than she actually loves food. Unlike Ina (but that's why she's fat).

I became a tv cook because my first idea of throwing plantation parties didn't pan out.

Oh my word. The Pioneer Woman is making ramen "pho" using the seasoning that came with the ramen brick and tossing veggies and thinly sliced beef in a bowl. Add soy, sirracha, and lime. This is a cooking show!

R63, that was the comment made by Alexis on her gross "Whatever, Martha" program.

Ina says she tests her recipes over and over again to make sure they come out the same before she'll put them in her cookbook. I doubt Martha does anything except demonstrate what someone told her to. This YT video is a perfect example. She makes these flat, hard as a rock chocolate chip cookies. The comments correctly say that Martha says they use no leavening but she puts baking soda in them. Also, she says you should bake these cookies three at a time. Yeah, that'll take no time at all for a dozen.

R73 That's not new I do this when I don't have enough time to cook. I can throw it together in 15 minutes and have a tasty meal at night.

Any guacamole recipe that contains anything other than avocado, lime juice, and salt, is bullshit.

The whole point of good guacamole is to accentuate the avocado flavor. Adding tomatoes, garlic, peppers, onion, cilantro, etc. just dilutes that and makes it pointless. You might as well make it from peas at that point.

Seriously. Try it some time. Avocado, lime juice, and salt. That is all it takes.

R73 I share your dismay. What you described sounds to me like "bachelor" food, wolfed down by young Japanese men after a night of drinking!

MS doesn't create any of the recipes she has people under her to dream up the recipes most of them are not trained chefs. I almost had a job working for her but friends who have been there warned me not to take the job, "you will regret it".

R78, May I ask you if you agree with the accusation she is surrounded by a gaggle of creative gay men who are responsible for her success? I've heard from many she can be a great friend, and a ton of fun, but she's thankless to employees and takes all the credit.

R50 so you love Martha even though you personally saw her berating a young clerk because there was no quail that day? Martha seems like a horrible person

I still think Melida Lee has Martha beat, as far as repertoire of recipes and cooking techniques, and she has a call-in radio show (she even does a show on Thanksgiving to help people with last-minute problems).

It's because as they finish eating their food made with Martha's recipes, they get an image of her in cuffs and a jumpsuit.

She's on QVC right now selling a spiral ham for $160.00!!!! For a ham???

R79 MS is a micromanager I can't work for a person who does this. Yes most of those rumors are true. I also have friends who were her neighbors in CT, they all hated her. When she was taping her show from her home the production crew trucks would block the roads in her neighborhood making it difficult to get around.

Thx R84, as I suspected. Am shocked she's peddling $160 hams on QVC though!

Isn't peddling a $160 ham on QVC just a touch déclassé? Selling pots and pans, gadgets, towels, sheets , furnishings , etc. is part and parcel of being a lifestyle guru. But ham on QVC is a foray into deplorable territory.

she's an entitled basic bitch. Never got the hype. Her attitude is certainly not acceptable either

Martha is not a nice person. I heard she is going to war against a fellow food mogul named Jack right now.

Have you considered having a stroke or TIA event induced by long term meth abuse and an overdose? I had a tenant whose soon to be ex had a stroke due to these factors and was banned from driving by the DMV. He got his SSI pretty easily from what I hear. $850 from the State of CA. Of course, he's still using.

Wrong thread r89

[quote]She's on QVC right now selling a spiral ham for $160.00!!!! For a ham???

I hope it's not her lady ham! That thing must be really well-aged by now!

[quote]It's because as they finish eating their food made with Martha's recipes, they get an image of her in cuffs and a jumpsuit.

Better that image than this one.

The worst. Consistently. They always sound good in theory, but never in practice. I think she’s more into the aesthetics and presentation, but doesn’t really enjoy food or take real pleasure in eating.

I wonder if Matha's "special" ham is imported from Poland? Unless it's the famous French ham, or the Jamon Iberico, Imcan't imagine it being worth the $160. Does anyone know what makes it so special? Even dry aged Virgiana ham can still be found for $30 a pound or less. My curiousity is piqued now!

Sorry that recipe didn't work for you, R5.

Here's an alternative from a woman who lives in Japan with how-to pics.

R86 The hams are probably $60 there is a $100 premium for her to slap her name on it.

Ina: They drummed you outta Connecticut so ya come crawlin' back to the Hamptons. Well, the Hamptons don't go for vanilla essence and canola oil. Now get outta my way. I got a Le Creuset casserole dish waiting for me.

Martha: That's a switch from the non-stick pans you usually cook with.

Ina: At least I never put my name on a Sears collection of them.

Ina, non-stick?

MS is a lush. Her recipes are hit and miss because half the time she’s sloshed in the kitchen.

Ina Garten's recipes are so successful because she personally tests each one, and then she gives it to one of her assistants to test. If they can make the recipe successfully, too, then she publishes it.

Martha hasn't had any personal involvement in recipe development for years. Her team does all of that now. Truth is, Martha only cooks on TV now. She has personal chefs that cook at her homes. According to her daughter and people who used to work for her, she never did much cooking at home once she became famous.

Someone upthread got it. Martha is about appearances. When it comes to cooking, it's not about taste but presentation and that's why she's so woefully out of her element when cooking or baking.

I wanted to add that because baking is more about science, math and exactness, I would think she would be better at it but as the chocolate chip cookie demonstration proves, she isn't.

America's Test Kitchen and Cook's Country recipes have gone down in quality, too. I've made a few of their "fool-proof" recipes, and they aren't all that great. I'm talking mostly about their baked goods. Their recipes turn out okay, but I've found better ones from other sources.

I've had good luck with Genius Kitchen

Honestly, the world is running out of recipes. How many freaking ways are there to bake a cake or roast a chicken? The problem is that the modern media monster requires a constant influx of recipe chum. Many sites have mediocre recipes - it pisses me off when I spend $8 on ingredients to make Alton Brown's Shitty Ass Chewy My Fucking Ass Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies, and they turn out like bricks and get even harder the longer they sit around. I think Joy of Baking website is pretty good though - Joy does not put out untested, crappy recipes.

I love Anna Olson. Compare this chocolate chip recipe to Martha's.

I also loved Sandra Bullock's sister Gesine Prado's show "Baked in Vermont". Hope Food Network renews.

You slay me R105! Thx for the laughs, and BTW totally agree with you.

I remember one time on Martha's show, she went to the research section of The New York Public Library. With the "special books" section, you have to fill out a request form and then wait for them to pull the book from the shelf. She requested an old French book on flower arranging. There was this queeny older man who brought it to her almost immediately. I laughed when I saw that because it was so much the opposite of my experience. I requested a special book and sat for 30 minutes before they told me the "robot locator" was broken and I had to come back on another day. So I returned on another day. The book I was looking for was printed in both English and German and I wrote in capital letters on the request form that I wanted the English edition. Well, what did Shaniqua at the desk give me? The German version.

The "Martha Stewart" name opens doors.

Aren't there enough recipes already?

No r109.

There are new culinary traditions still to be explored, and old ones to be rediscovered.

If you aren’t an incurious dullard, that is.

A friend worked for Martha before she was famous, back when she was young, married and had a small catering company that she was ambitious to build. My friend loved working for her. He said she insisted on the highest standards for the work and from the staff, but that she was entirely fair and reasonable. She herself worked like a demon and led the way. Every gig that he worked on with her ran smoothly and was received by the customer enthusiastically. He insists she knew what she was doing with every bit of it.

Who knows how things may have changed with her since then, but he loved working with her then.

So this was prior to her divorce from Andy Stewart, R111? I read that he left Martha for another woman. Maybe she became an embittered harridan after that experience, except she didn't become the murderous Betty Broderick type, just whacked out in other respects..

At least she got to keep the last name that helped brand her empire. Can you imagine Martha Kostyra becoming a household name?

Andy Stewart was Jewish. So Stewart wouldn't have been his family's real surname. Martha could've just changed hers too.

[quote]Andy Stewart was Jewish.

Really? As in "Andrew Stewart Mendelssohn," or some such bit of nomenclature?

No, as in his parents would've been called something like Stein before they landed at Ellis Island.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

It was said in a bio that Martha harangued Andy for hours once because he didn't put the logs in the fireplace correctly.

Oh dear, sounds like something she would do R117. Hopefully she's become less uptight since her association with Snoop Dog. I hope she partakes.

Read this and it will all become clear.

If you put anything in guacamole other than avocado, lime juice, and salt, you are a fucking shitty cook and know nothing.

R120 So you said in r76, you boring guacamole maker.

You can have tomatoes and cilantro, natch, but really avocado, lime juice and (good!) salt is what it's really about when it comes to guacamole. Red pepper flakes and/or some sort of coup de glace (sour cream or queso) is permissible, as well. But, that's it.

I remember that book, r119. I was working in a prop house where some of the props used on that book cover came from. The poor prop stylist was trying so hard to fly under the wire and not let it get out there that they were doing it.

Martha, as she is preparing one of her recipes, knows how to make the recipe beautiful, interesting and challenging. That is her hook. I like Ina for the same reason. But if I want something that I know will make my dinner guests enjoy the meal, I look to Tyler Florence. Generally they are somewhat easy to make and the flavor is spot on. And I find him kinda cute.

R124, Ina is definitely substance over style which is the inverse of Martha. Ina can make her dishes look good but her primary concern is taste, which is obvious if you've ever tried her recipes.

Ina is as wide as she is tall.

I think the phrase is "crying all the way to the bank". Meant to be sarcastic. "Laughing" doesn't quite work.

Martha was at her best back in the 80's and 90's.. up until her incarceration. Later, she just sold out. She got into many things that strayed away from her original brand.... some pretty ridiculous. At one time, she had Martha Stewart house plans, vitamin supplements, a Starbucks type coffee house in NYC, crafty stuff, now... clothing and garden and power tools, sold on QVC, just to name a few. All she does is put her name on anything, just to make money. I don't have too much respect for her, anymore. I loved her when she started out. Her catalog (now defunct) was the best! All the items were of excellent quality... now, her Macy's stuff is overpriced and cheaply made in China. I had her pillow covers that fell apart after the first wash. Her enameled cookware chips easily... vs. Le Creuset, which never chipped. She's in it for the money now, for her very lavish lifestyle.

Today, the LAFF network reran the Ellen where Martha played Martha in what seemed to be an attempt to make her likable, and I recall there was a backlash against her in the 90s when she moved from PBS to primetime.

Polak chancer from Nutley.

r130 = Gud spelr frum Nork

A friend made a cheesecake from her recipe; it was perfection....

Are there any good "cooking for one" recipes/sites?

Someone as caustic and unlikeable as Martha Stewart must have a HUGE cache of 'recipes for one.'

that’s funny...

I made her yellow cake and followed the recior exactly and found it dry and unappealing.

On the other hand, I made her crab cakes for a Christmas party and they were the best I’ve ever had AND they were baked, not fried. So I guess it’s hit or miss.

Ina Garten’s recipes come out perfect every time, just cut back on the amount of fresh lemon or rind she seems to love. My rule of thumb for her recipes is to use 1/3 of her lemon, fresh basil, or mustard to start. You can always add more if needed.

Have never had a problem with Ina Garten’s recipes. They always turn out well. And I must say that, for very simple food, Rachel Ray is very dependable.

I was a bookseller in the ‘90, when Mar was at her peak, and her rep for writing recipes that didn’t work was around back then.

I don't get this reputation. Anyone can write a recipe that does not work. Easily done.

But who would publish such a thing? What a stupid, damaging, self-defeating thing to do. Just have a few competent people execute the fucking recipe.

What broke down that a person as prominent as Martha Fucking Stewart published a series of defective recipes?

Who knew there were so many adventurous cooks on DL?

I will say this, there was a time when many men and women would line up to taste Martha's ham, smoked or not.

Lol...she also used to serve a hot taco, so....

Particularly on baking. I helped a London friend's little girl bake cupcakes and we tried everyone's recipes in the UK and US: Nigella, Mary Berry, Martha, Ina, old Julia Child, Payard, Ansel, Hummingbird Bakery

You know who's recipes kicked ass every time? Paula Deen

R141=racist

[quote]when she moved from PBS to primetime.

When was she ever in prime time?

[quote]You know who's recipes

Oh, dear.

[quote]Ina Garten’s recipes come out perfect every time, just cut back on the amount of fresh lemon or rind she seems to love. My rule of thumb for her recipes is to use 1/3 of her lemon, fresh basil, or mustard to start.

Are you crazy? What makes Ina's recipes so great is that she infuses them with more flavor than the average recipe does. I abhor watered down recipes. If I'm eating a lemon square, or key lime pie, I want to taste the tartness. Ina doesn't dumb down her recipes to please the bland and unsophisticated palettes of Middle America.

I sure wish she'd dumb down her farts, r145.

Ina Garten's a Diva, Baby

--Iron Butterfly

R145 I live on the upper east side of Manhattan not in middle America. I didn’t say eliminate it, I just said start out with less and add more as you need it. Not everyone likes everything with so much lemon. Lemon bars yes, definitely needs a punch of fresh lemon. But I made Ina’s lobster pasta salad and I felt like all the lemon didn’t go well with all the mayonnaise. Likewise her roasted broccoli, I didn’t think it needed quite as much lemon zest. So now I know, her recipes DO have big flavors and you shouldn’t just toss them all in without giving a few tastes first to determine if that’s how you want your recipe. Same with salt. You can always add more, but once it’s there you’re stuck.

Otherise Ina’s recipes are great, I have all her books, never miss an episode of her show, and wish I was one of her gays in East Hampton.

I adore Ina’s roasted broccoli....and I put on extra lemon zest

However, your advice is sensible r148....you can always add extra

Nigella, now there's one who's really gone to seed (pun intended). Her two most recent books are horrible, lazy retreads of her earlier ones, and her recipes have always been hit or miss.

It's one thing not to cook at home if you're head of a major conglomerate / can afford a cook, but to publish recipes that don't work... that's just sloppy.

I remember reading an article how the huge level of dysfunction and annual operating losses at her company, MSLO. Sad how she now seem's to just make money from putting her name on any Made in China junk.

Does she still attempt to appeal to flyover fraus? I think it might be better if she just abandoned that and cooked what she eats at home: caviar, foie gras, her employee's souls, duck confit.

Poor Nigella--she went through a truly awful divorce--I'm not surprised that it's all gone to pot. I like her quick meal recipes, but her baking is hit or miss--the casual approach is more risky for baking.

With baking, I'm old school--I still swear by Rose Levy Berenbaum and Maida Heatter. R105 has a point, a lot of recipes don't need to be reinvented. What you need, for baking, are clear, exact directions.

Bland, unseasoned food is one of my pet peeves. If you can't take spice and heat, then we aren't going to get along.

If anything, I add MORE lemon to Ina's recipes. A good dish needs acid to round out its flavor.

I've done lots of Ina's recipes but the few I've made with lemon as an ingredient I've learned to tone down the lemon.

There's a delicious shrimp linguini recipe that I only use about half the lemon required.

[quote] I made her yellow cake and followed the recior exactly and found it dry and unappealing.

Her yellow cake recipe + chocolate frosting is one of my favorites. I've never had it turn out dry. Perhaps you over baked it. Do you have an overn thermometer?

My guacamole is only avocado, lime, garlic and green chilis. No salt is ever needed, because the chips have salt.

[quote] I live on the upper east side of Manhattan not in middle America.

Are you yet another "decorator", hun?

Barefoot Contessa's new season starts tomorrow morning. I hope she has some good recipes for me to try, because the past 2 seasons have been rather redundant.

r158 Get ready for more artfully arranged cheese boards.

Per DirecTV: All kinds of bread and dishes that feature it. Foolproof Irish Guiness brown bread, fish and lobster cakes, Camember and prosciutto tartines

Heh, I forgot to mention that the the DirecTV menu has it rated as "good for childrent 10+. What's that about? Her Make a Wish debacle?

I've made a number of items from her long skinny book of hors d'oeuvres and they were very good. The book is about 20 years old.

I love Ina but maternal she ain't.

R51 I think you really named it - for both Ina and Martha. Neither are truly trained chefs. Sure, both have had guidance and mentorship from some top chefs about cooking and have really learned to listen and grew as cooks. They both bring something to their culinary creativity that has made them who they are now, but they are primarily extremely savvy entrepreneurs who saw trends in lifestyle and capitalised on that. I am not dissing either woman - I admire their skill and success at what they have accomplished, and it has made many people excited and inspired to be good or more accomplished cooks. Many on this thread exemplify that well.

That said, every one of either Ina or Martha's recipe has fallen flat in some way to some degree when I've tried them. I am an experienced cook and even when I've tweaked the recipes there is still something missing. It's not that they fail, it's just that they are very serviceable and tasty to a point but not much more.

Perhaps I was spoiled by being exposed to Julia, Jacques Pépin, and other classically trained chefs on PBS on their original shows, individuals who were not telling you what to do but instead engaging you in the almost seductive story they were unfolding about the real art of creating excellent food. It is a deep passion for people like Pépin. Their attitude and presentation had an infectious, charismatic presence that was very inspiring. I continued to hear that in Jacques Pépin in the last interview I heard (NPR.) He's nearly 83.

When talking about his early life he spoke about living very closely with the foods his family ate, and the privations that the war caused - food meant something different to him later ibecause of all of that.

The two greatest, most memorable, home cooked meals I have ever eaten: a Portuguese dish (not Brazilian) cooked by my college friend's native Portuguese girlfriend and tamales made by elderly women of the To'Hajiilee band of Navajo in New Mexico. I think they infuse the love and dedication of generations of grandmothers and mothers who taught them, without measures, how to put that oral and sensory tradition and love into the food they cooked.

R164 I would like to cook a meal with you, and then we can get afterward. Your contributions to this thread have been delightful.

With an artfully arranged cheese board, of course.

R105, Alton's recipes have always been sketchy. Back during Good Eats I made his asiago and portobello gratin and learned the hard way that mushrooms don't belong in a gratin because of the water content. His foolproof steak in cast iron method was bad. His grilled cheese sandwich was okay in concept but didn't actually work.

He baked a roux. Stirred flour and oil together and just put it in the oven. I mean, come on.

When I read an interview with him saying he didn't cook at home because it's the wife's job (he's a fundie) it all made sense.

Totally overrated man in all aspects. Find someone else's recipes to try.

[quote] Well, what did Shaniqua at the desk give me? The German version.

Yeah, white people never make mistakes.

DL is just so fucking trashy nowadays. Racists on every thread.

[quote]a Portuguese dish (not Brazilian) cooked by my college friend's native Portuguese girlfriend and tamales made by elderly women of the To'Hajiilee band of Navajo in New Mexico. I think they infuse the love and dedication of generations of grandmothers and mothers who taught them, without measures, how to put that oral and sensory tradition and love into the food they cooked.

R164 would have voted for Obama for a third time if he'd been able to.

I know this isn’t an Alton Brown thread, but this article about him in the NYT killed my appetite. Give me Martha’s shtick any day.

R165 thank you for your very gracious and provocative compliment. I have no doubt that your offered cheese board would be a beautifully chosen and artfully executed delicious pre-prelude to the first course to the subsequent dinner courses. Or as the post main course offering of cheese with fruit. And Port, lots of excellent Port.

Seriously, I sincerely thank you. It sounds like we would enjoy concocting delicious meals together in a nicely stocked kitchen and sitting down to our creations over a good bottle of wine..

R170 you are random and full of bad cuisine. No place for you here, so I direct you to the nearest public bathroom where you can ruminate, or worse, on the error of your ways. Bon Appétit!

The very best Eggplant Caponata I ever made I made following Martha's recipe.

[QUOTE] I live on the upper east side of Manhattan not in middle America. Are you yet another "decorator", hun?

What a complete cunt you are. No, I’m not a decorator I administer the computer systems for a world famous hospital whose doctors don’t take your Obamacare insurance.

Sorry, r175, but with that diatribe, you outcunted your prey. And you write run-on sentences like a seven-year-old girl.

[QUOTE] Bland, unseasoned food is one of my pet peeves. If you can't take spice and heat, then we aren't going to get along.

If anything, I add MORE lemon to Ina's recipes. A good dish needs acid to round out its flavor.

I like flavors in my food too as well as spice. I just don’t it drowning in citrus. Ina loves lemon, it’s just a fact and easily observed from her shows and reading her books. Most dishes need the rounding out of acid, but not everyone likes it so prominent.

Was Nancy Fuller's show cancelled? Her recipes were nothing to write home about, but I liked her show and house in upstate NY. I only see her now as a host for the barking competitions.

^^^ I hate that loudmouthed cow

The "too much lemon" cries make me chuckle. My sister overdoes the lemon. Her veal piccata could take the enamel off teeth.

If you enjoy a croissant with your coffee, Julia Child will show you how to make your own.

It just takes a day or so.

R168, The Americas Test Kitchen gals also say it's easier to put the flour in the oven to brown.

They say it's the easiest way to go in making a roux. Start with browned and toasted flour.

[quote]I only see her now as a host for the barking competitions.

The Westminster Kennel Club show?

Yes, Nancy Fuller's stand-and-stir show was cancelled.

R182 One thing to keep in mind if browning dry flour, or creating a dark roux is that the flour loses its thickening ability the darker it becomes, or the longer it is cooked. Always add a little more than for a standard sauce, or blonde roux.

That's not what Alton Brown did, r182. As I already said, he mixed the oil in and then baked it. He didn't just brown the flour.

Come on, buddy, read before bitching. Stop wasting our time.

The French have a tradition of browning flour in dry pans... I had old Jewish relatives who did the same in England. I have also heard of people (only in America) tossing a roux into the oven in the south. Both methods ultimately achieve the same thing R186.

Weird that some people here would call avocado, lime juice and salt a guacamole and be so smug about it. I mean, sure, it's great if you like puréed avocado, but that is NOT how traditional guacamole is made, sorry.

OMG, R141, Paula Deene has better cupcakes than Mary Berry?? I love Mary; I want to be like her when I'm...well, I want to be like her now. And I want to love her cupcakes!

Here's the recipe:

Krispie Khocolate Kookies

Ingredients

3 cups white flour

3 cups white sugar

2 white eggs, segregated

1 pack Paula Deen brand margarine

Method

In a bowl, whip the egg whites until they look like freshly picked cotton.

In another combine the margarine, sugar, and yolks and beat until pale.

Integrate the flour, by force if necessary, until thoroughly misegenated. Then fold in the egg whites.

Place on a lined baking sheet and bake for 15 - 20 minutes. Do not rotate halfway through to ensure that darker cookies remain at the back of the oven.

Leave to cool on a wire rack, moving less well-done cookies to elsewhere in your kitchen for "good schools" if they appear to be cooling unevenly.

Those who try a Martha recipe have higher standards, the frau's who cook from food network are just happy if their spawn eat.

This lady explains how to get a fluffier Martha Stewart yellow cake. I made the ‘dense’ version and because it didn’t seem to rise as much as expected I baked it longer, hence the dry and firm texture. My oven is weird anyway, I’ve had the building maintenance staff try to recalibrate it and they said it was accurate, yet somehow things never seem to bake in the amount of time the recipes call for. Maybe because I’m on a high floor?

Anyway, next time I try Stewart’s yellow cake I may opt for the “light and lofty” version this wueen demonstrates.

This "lady," R192?

Great Thomas Joseph video, R193. Great cakesplaining.

'Stop wasting our time,' R186.

Really? This entire site is a waste of time.

R191 = Martha, trying to forget that the fraus made her a multi millionaire.

[quote]The two greatest, most memorable, home cooked meals I have ever eaten: a Portuguese dish (not Brazilian) cooked by my college friend's native Portuguese girlfriend and tamales made by elderly women of the To'Hajiilee band of Navajo in New Mexico. I think they infuse the love and dedication of generations of grandmothers and mothers who taught them, without measures, how to put that oral and sensory tradition and love into the food they cooked.

I think you found them delicious because you liked the stories and relished the idea of relating these experiences in the future. Anyway, this is very cringey.

Yeah. I don't want to go anywhere near food made someone's granddaughter to no recipe.

R198 What?

That whole random old ladies throwing together things into a pot with no rhyme or reason sounds romantic in theory --- in practice, no. My grandmothers were atrocious cooks.

R197 Fuck you, you cunt. Apparently you've never eaten a meal prepared with great skill and an understanding of how to create great flavours; for that reason the meals were exceptionally memorable. Sadly, it sounds as though your memories must be very bitter and trivial. You sound unfulfilled. Go out and treat yourself to an exceptional meal; maybe that will improve your attitude.

Wow. This thread really brings out the nasty in us.

Tut tut, sisters. We’re ALL pretty.

Someone typing "Fuck you, you cunt" on a thread about Martha Stewart recipes.

Datalounge, promise me you'll never go away.

No. R201 is NOT pretty.

R159, OMG, she really did do another cheese board on her new episode! She did it to showcase her Irish bread.

I would eat cheese with Irish soda bread. Wouldn't you, R205?

Dammit! I forgot to set my Dvr

Did she use her new $13k stove??

Or is she back in CT?

I use her Au gratin potatoes recipe. To die for and I always get raves when I make it.

I've used several of Martha's recipes and haven't had issue. However, I would bet that issues might arise depending on where the recipe came from and from what time period in her career/collection.

I didn't see this mentioned upthread so forgive me if it has already been mentioned but I would guess that Martha and her people have edited recipes the same way other food celebs have... meaning, they leave out a key ingredient or step in their recipes. Several of them do this, notably Emeril (every person I have ever spoken to who has tried to make one of his recipes complains how awful it turns out). Rachel Ray is notorious for doing this as well.

I also don't understand the comments above that Ina's recipes don't involve real skills or technique. I don't find that to be true at all and wonder if people have actually watched her programs or read her recipes. Most of them require more than just dumping things into a bowl.

I also don't agree that only her non-baking recipes turn out. I have never had an issue with any of her baked goods. I can always rely on her recipes and they always turn out great and are a hit.

R207, she's still in Conn finishing out her Cook Like a Pro series. When she said to use really good vanilla, she sort of smiled at the camera, as if she's aware of the inside joke.

And I'm surprised that this is DL and nobody's asked who's had Thomas Joseph!

I love Martha if only because I've never felt she was a master at one thing other than marketing her brand. Her recipes are bland, her homemaking skills are...complicated. And she's so disconnected from reality. But the way she's kept herself relevant for damn near 40 years is amazing.

Ina used a "good" mayonnaise, Best Foods/Hellmans for her fish and crab cakes! If Hellman's is a good mayonnaise, what olive oil brands fall into the category?

Best Foods/Hellman’s is such a humble ingredient, but it really does taste good. I used to think it was white trash food until I saw the unmistakable (yet obscured) jar on some cooking shows.

Hellman's is shit mayo. I started eating Kewpie mayonnaise and couldn't believe how delicious it was. So I had myself a taste test with the 2 side-by-side. When a bit of Hellman's is scrutinized on its own, it's salty, sour, and oily - the canola gives it a bit of a fishy or even rancid flavor. Hellman's works fine if you are using it as an ingredient on or in other stuff.

Kewpie is remarkably smooth, full, and tastes like mild creamy egg salad. You can't really pull apart the different flavors the way you can with Hellman's. It's delicious by itself or as in ingredient. It is much more rich/umami than Hellman's.

Kewpie is the shit.

Kewpie is superior to every American mayo I’ve tried, but then, I haven’t tried Dukes.

Who cleans up after these TV chefs?

"assistants"

You're not missing anything, R217, I finally got my hands on some Dukes and it sucked. The best mayo is one you make yourself with good non GMO and non soy oil and eggs, mustard, lemon and a little bit of salt. If you have a stick blender it takes just a couple of minutes and you don't have to stand their dripping the oil in slowly for 20 minutes. If you use pasteurized shell eggs it's perfectly safe and lasts for about 6 weeks in the fridge.

I like to add an extra yoke and an extra 1/2 cup of oil for a very rich, thick mayo, like professional Hellmann's, that many restaurants use. While it is still high in calories from fat at least if you use a healthy you don't have to feel guilty about it being unhealthy, just fattening.

God. The Mayonnaise bitches are here.

r220 If you seriously think whether or not the oil is non-GMO makes a difference, your taste is suspect. Of course you'd also have more credibility if you knew how to spell "yolk."

I like watching her torture Marcia Cross by making her squeeze scrambled eggs back into an eggshell, beginning around 9:00.

Cains Mayonnaise. All the way. Am I right, New Englanders?

I am right.

I too like Kewpie, but I like Sir Kensington's for a more versatile flavour. It really reminds me of my mum's homemade. I don't dislike Martha, on the contrary I'm impressed with her business acumen. I do think Martha is very much like Coriander/Cilantro.... People either love her or hate her.

Martha is now hawking Jack in the Box. It's true. She goes face to face with Jack.

Her sales @ Macy*s must have really hit the skids, poor girl! I wasn't even aware this company/brand was still in business anymore! Let's hope they don't suffer another E-Coli outbreak again. This seems all very antithetical to everything Martha stands for. I'm sad I missed these... Shall have to check them out on the old UTube.

I bought a Martha Stewart knife set at Macys, they came out of the box dull. Even after sharpening them myself they never felt great while using them and they’d quickly lose their sharpness. I also bought a Teflon skillet and the bolt that held the handle to the pan rusted. So yeah, it’s made in China crap that she herself would never use.

This was the superbowl commercial and has been edited to where she simply makes an appearance at the end. Overall, it's quite pathetic.

Two things I learned from Martha over the years stick out and have become part of my routine:

Hand-wash plastic kitchenware (and most of us have some, admit it). It shouldn't go in the dishwasher.

Felt-lined pants hangers, and hang the pants upside down by the cuffs in the closet. The weight of the pants hanging that way helps remove and reduce wrinkles.

Also, back when she did a lot of gardening segments, I learned a lot from her. Including how to plant bulbs in the fall and how NOT to plant trees and shrubs too deep.

[quote]Hand-wash plastic kitchenware (and most of us have some, admit it).

Wait. There are people who think plastic kitchenware is beneath them and don't have any? I didn't know such exquisitely rarefied people exist. Are they afraid the help will try to poison by using them in the microwave?

What kind of mayo do [italic]they[/italic] eat?

R220 There is no such thing as "Professional Hellman's" if you are referring to the huge jars of Hellman's you can buy them at Costco or any other warehouse store. It is the same stuff you can buy in the smaller consumer sizes in the grocery store.

r232 The fact that you misspelled "Hellmann's" in your signature makes us question your truthfulness.

Or, R233, it could have nothing to do with mayo.

It seems more likely that he was fired as Design Manager because of his lousy spelling.

I preferred her somewhat aspirational '90s show with the classical intro to the frau-fare she began serving up post-prison.

What I learned from watching Martha is that she'll often not wash her hands after touching raw meat (or running them through her hair) and then proceed to touch some other ingredient.

I don't think I've ever seen her do that, R236, and I have watched most of her Create Channel shows.

This recipe of Martha's has always pissed me off. Actually, it's her daughter Alexis's recipe for chocolate chip cookies. Martha is always talking about it because her surly daughter came up with it. But let me tell you, it's flawed!

I love a thin cookie, but these are oil slicks because off all the butter. You have to pat them with a paper towel to mop up the extra oil, or eat them with a napkin.

I just remembered that Alexis had a blog a few years ago. Some of her own recipes and a few photos of the Meyer building apt Martha bought her. Surprisingly, the archive is still up.

^ You'd think Martha could have hooked Alexis up with a photographer.

R238. That crazy bitch says to bake THREE COOKIES AT A TIME?!! Yeh, who has time for that nonsense?!

That batter really flattens out, R241.

Oh GAWD some of you are pretentious little queens.

Arguing about mayonnaise? Really?

Helmans/Best Foods is totally acceptable.

Jeez.

R241 that means 30 cookies, 3 per batch at a time x 12 minutes each batch would take TWO HOURS to finish!

r243, a "Guacamole Purist" does not put mayonnaise in guacamole.

Can't you do two half-sheet pans at once, R244? That would be one hour, and it's waiting time.

Dan Souza has discussed cookies two trays in oven at once before. Uneven, he says.

Even if you turn them halfway through? Oy.

R237 she used to do it all the time on the show she had on The Food Network.

I've never had an issue with baking two sheets of cookies as long as I rotate top to bottom and left to right about halfway through.

When did Martha have a show on Food Network? I've been watching since 1999, and I have never seen her on Food Network.

She used to have From Martha's Kitchen and I think they also used to run Martha Stewart Living. I can't remember which was which but they yanked one of those programs right around the time she got in trouble and subsequently went to prison.

Yes, there is such a thing as "professional" mayonnaise. Hellmann's makes an extra heavy mayonnaise that is or used to be sold only to professional food places. No, it is not just a larger size of regular Hellmann's. A bigger size of the exact same thing doesn't make a product professional. Different ingredients do. And yes it is done by adding more egg yolk and more oil. It's one of the reasons ready made things like tuna, chicken and egg salad taste a little different than anything you make at home. Chefs use it because it doesn't separate as easily and for other reasons.

Someday I hope the Mayonnaise Bitches will accept me as one of their own. Until then I can only wait and search for Kewpie mayo on my grocer's shelves.

Get it on Amazon R254. It does have MSG but an American version doesn't so get the Japanese Kewpie.

Does the Extra-Heavy Mayonnaise work well as lube?

Yes R256, but you have to shove a large salami in there.

I like the recipes of Tyler Florence.

I've always wanted to make Martha's recipe for Christmas eggnog, but it looks like so much trouble to make. It also contains raw eggs and I'd be mortified if I gave my guests salmonella poisoning for Christmas.

Look how much alcohol she puts in her eggnog. My grandmother's panties would be hanging from the Christmas tree after one cup.

Your grandma was a hot slut, R259.

You can get pasteurized raw eggs now, so no poisoning of the guests.

Martha's egg not recipe is absolutely delicious.

One pretty glass cup would be all you needed. That damn thing is so strong!

I'm sure the alcohol kills anything that might be in the eggs.

^^egg nogg ^^

Once made Martha's eggnog for a party. Warned a teen-ager that it was spiked, but she didn't pay attention. She then started raving about how wonderful it was.

Oops.

I love Martha's recent porta-potty girl schtick with the Arabian peninsula sponsors where she cooks these insanely complicated (but delicious) middle eastern dishes. Her kitchen is decked out with gold, even a gold KitchenAid mixer. The show makes the recipes seem straightforward but there's a lot of prep work that Martha leaves out of her show.

She uses gobs of expensive spices like saffron ($5-$8 gram) and cardamom ($5 oz). And some desserts have a couple whole vanilla beans ($5 each) scraped in. Do you know vanilla prices are at an all-time high? One time I calculated she used about $30 of spices in one recipe.

What's that R265? Since when has she been going Arabian? Link please.

Since Season 5 of Cooking School, R266 (i.e., last year).

R191 nails it - you cook Martha's way to prove you have ELEVATED cooking skills - you aren't a common Rachel ray/Paula deen cook.

Ina has elevated cooking too but she focuses on taste vs presentation.

Martha's Arabian cooking school series this season is wack! Way too implied ingrdientwise for me.

R255 wait, you PREFER MSG in your mayo? Why?

R269, not saying I prefer it but the MSG gives Kewpie its distinctive flavor that so many love. Without it, it's just....Best Foods.

Martha's Arabian Cooking School season was exhausting. I don't know how many times I said out loud, "NO one is going to make any of this! Not without servants and a ginormous, well-ventilated kitchen," Nearly every recipe, many of which, granted, looked delicious, had more steps and used more bowls and utensils than an entire episode of America's Test Kitchen. But I did have to laugh that all the bowls and measuring spoons, etc. were suddenly gold and there was vaguely Arabic art on the walls behind her. Corporate sponsors included Al Jazeera and either Emirates or Etihad Airlines. A gal's gotta eat, I suppose.

R271 - truth - gee Martha there's sponsored by and SPONSORED By, I was surprised Martha wasn't burqua'ed too.

Thanks to this thread I'm making Balaleet tonight! Looks delicious... and not too ridiculously complicated. We shall see how it turns out.

When you're done with that omelet, Jafar, I want to see you make those shrimp balls with tamarind sauce. And no help from any of your 8 wives or 14 Filipina maids! ! والكثير من الخبز العربي! يلا

I forgot to mention Martha is using vanilla beans in her Scheherezade routine because good Muslims don't use alcohol at all, including in cosmetics, perfumes and flavorings.

MSG is delicious. Only racists believe MSG sensitivity is a thing.

[quote]But I did have to laugh that all the bowls and measuring spoons, etc. were suddenly gold

Weren't they copper?

[quote]Only racists believe MSG sensitivity is a thing.

Peak "RACIST!!!" shrieking.

Just had the Balaleet! A huge pain in the ass, with a ton of pots/pans/processes... that said, it's a fantastic flavor combination and a very unique texture/idea. I drizzled some cinnamon and saffron infused into a chili oil with a spurt of sriracha mayo on top, with warmed homemade whole-wheat paratha on the side.

I'd do it again, especially knowing I can cut some corners from the belabored process in the future.

7.5/10

Oh, and R274, I take you up on your offer! But, it will probably have to wait until this weekend...

And, if anyone cares, I will be making this non-Martha recipe in the meantime!

One time I remember watching her turn some old thing (a skull, or a broken vase, or her mother's wedding veil, or whatever) into a lamp, and while she worked the wires with clippers and twisted the ends to power the socket, she said something like "and of course I would advise you to have your electrician check your work if you do it yourself."

And I thought, wow, this girl has balls.

I read a couple of the lower rated reviews to get a better understanding of the rating.

R68 has it right. One person gave an excellent (in my opinion) recipe 1 star. When I read it why, they had made a complete different dish! Veal cutlets instead of chicken, margarine instead of butter, egg substitute instead of whole eggs, and whole host of other substitutions. If you change the pasta used in a dish, it usually requires a different cooking time. As someone else posted, you need to look at the ingredients and shop for them. Make the actual dish, dammit!

R280 people are, for the most part, morons.

r281 And if there was ever any doubt, one need only look to the White House.

R280, it's like those reviewers on Amazon who give a book on history or a novel a 1 star review because it didn't arrive on time or they wanted to return it and couldn't figure out how to do it.

Omg! I'm sure we could populate an entire thread on the idiots who try a recipe and end up changing and adding so much shit that it's an entirely different dish!

People are so stupid! Those reviews are not helpful at all.

that one pot pasta dish I follow to the T and make it any time I grill and there is NEVER anything left afterwards

To which one pot pasta dish do you refer, please. R285?

Indeed, r285. Here are a mere 27 baked pasta dishes from Martha.

Here's Martha's recipe for Pate a Choux. I've used it several times and it works perfectly. Ingredients and method are clearly and accurately stated.

She doesn't include either a baking time or a temperature. Of course, it is basic pastry dough that can be used in a variety of different ways, but there's not even a discussion of any of that, nor links to complete recipes that use pate a choux. It seems to be handled thoughtlessly. It doesn't do her any good to present it this way.

Method is clearly stated yet she doesn’t give a baking temp or time?

ohhhh, wait. The average DL poster is born knowing how to bake pastry.

I just had this conversation about baking times with a friend who is the head pastry chef at a well known restaurant r289....and he said that baking times are a myth. You’ve got check early and frequently, relying on visual and olfactory signals to when it’s done. It takes some experience.

R292 everyone will tell you that baking times are variable. There are a multitude of factors that can change a baking time from day to day. However, there are general times that are always included as a guideline... and most certainly a temperature!

R293 I have baked the same recipe in different temperatures before I achieved the end product that I wanted. So again, temperatures are just a suggestion.

No, baking times and temperatures are not "just a suggestion." They are, at a minimum, a guideline. Of course there are many variables. Even every home baker knows this. Each oven has its quirks. Elevation is a factor. Yadda yadda. But Stewart should tell you the expected temperature at which her dough recipe should be baked and about how long it should be baked. That there are variables is a given. And no one expects a recipe that instructs how to make the dough... and then leaves it in the bowl.

R294 temperatures are not a "suggestion." They are a guideline. Yes, you can easily find that cooking at various temperatures work better for you... and I'll bet it has everything to do with what your actual oven temperature is.

R44 who adds ⅝ of a cup of tarragon to a recipe?

Maybe if you were cooking for an entire infantry ..........

R295 Are you head party chef in a well known restaurant? If not, I’ll take his advice, rather than yours.

R296 I have an oven thermometer., hence, I know exactly what the temperature of my oven is.

Party = pastry

haha. Sure.

Ina looks like she ate every last one of the Profiteroles.

I'd like an éclair or three right now, and a large glass of cold milk.

I am making two different types of Irish Soda Bread right now. One sweet, and one savory.

🍀 Happy St. Patrick's Day, Bitches !

I’d like a slice of cake baked between 325 - 375 F for 45 - 60 minutes.

Just eat a peach from a tree. The hot juice runs down your chin. Forget Martha.

OH MY GOD, THAT WAS SO FUNNY, R301.

For whoever was looking for Martha's One-Pot Pasta, here you go.

Thanks, R307; that looks great!

I'm a pretty awful cook, but I wouldn't be scared off by that recipe.

Her problematic recipes are perhaps better than her unskilled photography.

50 minutes at 200 degrees?

Fuck that shit. I say 5 minutes at 2,000 degrees!

The new Martha Bakes season on PBS is all about cookies from around the world. The most recent one was on Eastern European cookies, and they recycled a 1998, I think, clip from Martha Stewart Living with Martha's mom ("Big Martha") making Polish cookies that I can't spell with Martha and Martha's niece Sophie. It was kinda sweet to see Big Martha again. Thanks, show!

Martha should learn how to use photoshop her photos would be 100% better.

Ina did make-ahead breakfasts today. She made a raspberry French toast. After she got it out of the oven, she closed the door with her foot and it slammed. Reminiscent of when Sue Ann Nivens closed oven door with her knee.

Was Sue Ann making a souffle?

[quote]Martha should learn how to use photoshop her photos would be 100% better

Aren't there food stylists whose job it is to do this? If Martha's too cheap to test recipes, I suppose hiring a food stylist is out of the question, too.

R314, Yes, my poor baby!

[quote] Aren't there food stylists whose job it is to do this? If Martha's too cheap to test recipes, I suppose hiring a food stylist is out of the question, too.

I'm sure that with datalounge's help struggling novice Martha can one day acheive great success.