Do you tend to follow recipes exactly when cooking?

No.

I improvise most of the time, although I don't have quite as much fun as the young gentlemen, above, seem to be having. I omit ingredients that I don't care for, make additions and substitutions.

Baking is not my long suit, but I am truer to a recipe when I do bread, cake, cookies.... There's more likely to be a chemical reaction among ingredients, and ingredient amounts, for the desired result.

I've told the story, here, before about a former boyfriend and I attempting to make plum jelly, from a tree in his yard. Neither of us liked things very sweet, so we cut way back on the sugar that was called for. We learned that the ratio of sugar to pectin is crucial in the gelling process. As plum syrup went, it was pretty good. And, now I know.

No, often there are ingredients (i.e.spices) that I don't like so I don't add them, sometimes I substitute.

I like to search variations until I find interesting unexpected ingredients, then I mix and match different parts of recipes.

Example: I found a waffle recipe that featured fresh squeezed lemon juice in its batter, so now I use that ingredient every time I make waffles.

No, but once I make something that works for me, often starting with something online, I usually follow my own recipes closely.

Always do the first time making it, after that it's a free for all.

when we first were going together I seriously considered this: He didn't like onions nor garlic; he didn't like rice (who doesn't like rice?); he doesn't like Mexican food ; etc

But I was in love. LOL

I get my onions, garlic, rice, Mexican food. He compromises.


It wasn't his mom. His mom loved onions. She ate them raw. She would go to their garden, pick and onion, and eat it. I couldn't do that! lol

nj, life is full of compromises.

I might change portions, ie double the sauce. Otherwise I try to.