Jane Manaster shares her take on . . .
risky recipes
Selecting a recipe online is such a temptation and such a gamble. Even experienced cooks eager to try something new can be lured into making bad mistakes. My latest failure was bran and raisin muffins. I trawled one site after another, rejecting the recipe ones that could live in the refrigerator for six weeks (perish the thought!) and the ones that demanded a whole packet of bran cereal. I didn’t want ingredients that stipulated fat-free, sugar-free, and egg-free as I always reckon too much ‘free’ ends up being taste-free as well.
At last I found the seemingly perfect one. Yes, I had raisins and molasses and all the basics. The recipe omitted to mention allowing the cereal to soften for a few minutes in the milk. I knew I should have trusted myself rather than the printed word. But I didn’t. The poor little muffins didn’t proudly rise in their paper cups. They just sat there looking singularly unappealing, like poorly mixed cornflakes-and-chocolate-crisps; They tasted just as I imagine sweetened doggie treats would taste. Woof!
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