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Gwenyth Paltrow is a liar liar pants on fire..."It's All Easy!"...not.


momee
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I've heard some people who liked the cookbook.  I think she'd have been better off to choose a different title though.  No one can take that seriously.

 

Cookbooks are hard, there are so many elements, and some of it is to do with taste - how you cook, what you like, how precise you are, and so on.

 

I don't think I've ever seen one where every recipe is something I'd use.

 

I found specific problems with different ones.  I usually find Jamie Oliver good for his more "regular" food - but his patter drives me a little nuts.  Martha Stewart is better than it used to be - a lot of hers I found had technical failures.  Williams-Sonoma seem to make everything more complicated than necessary, and I have had some technical issues there as well.

 

The biggest disappointment I had though was with The Nourished Kitchen, which a few people recommended to me.  I've had a few that worked and tasted ok, a few that worked and tasted really bland.  But there were an equal number I tried from that book that were actually inedible, and they were expensive.  So now I am not that inclined to try others, because I can't really afford to waste that kind of money regularly.

 

ETA - I'd also say chia seed pudding isn't hard, just kind of new.  I can get it at the bulk barn for a pretty cheap price.  It's not a bad addition to the cooking repertoire if your family likes it.

 

Thank you! In my pp, Martha Stewart was exactly who I was thinking about.  I am a good cook, I am an experienced cook and, frankly, have more technical experience than the average person.  I have worked in kitchens, I have taken professionally taught pastry classes, been asked to do a pastry apprenticeship etc. Martha drives me NUTS with her recipes. Or, at least she did. I gave up on them years ago.  She will have this beautiful picture, as always. And then these steps and the promise if you just follow her steps it will all be ok.  Well, no. There is always some step in there that is actually about 5 steps and it is usually something that is technically challenging and will fail the first couple times you do it.

 

FWIW, I have a SIL who is a very experienced seamstress and also likes to do crafts. She says the same thing about all Martha's sewing things and her crafts, that there will be some part where the whole thing is going to fall apart if you don't have a good amount of experience.

 

And both of us came to the conclusion that the results we got usually aren't worth the skills needed. What I cooked and what she made were....ok. But for all the kerfuffle involved, it wasn't worth the time we had to put into it.

 

 

 

And FWIW, the whole 'steaming' thing isn't just Gwyneth. It's a yoga thing to ease cramps. You sort of squat over a pan of water that is steaming and just sort of warm the area. Or some people sort of suspend a bowl of hot water in their toilet and sit on the toilet. It's bringing heat to the area and some people find it soothing. You can put herbs or essential oils in the water, if you are into that sort of thing. It's not a big deal and has been around for a very long time. I'm pretty sure my midwife suggested it as a way to help with post-birth pain.

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Ooohhhhhhh! I read it as "she STREAMS her nether regions." When you started talking about steam I thought there was some weird channel with nothing but a camera placed strategically outside her tea house. "Steams" is much less shocking.

I will never look at my lovely steaming teapot the same way again let alone walk by a tea house without snickering.

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Yes, think afros of the 70s (hoping that's not offensive to anyone)

 

 

Well, I'm not sure someone who has an afro would appreciate their hairstyle being compared to pubic hair, but I can't speak for them.

 

It simply means she isn't shaving or waxing her public hair off any longer. I don't see the need for euphemisms. If you are old enough to have pubic hair then you are old enough to talk about it, lol. For lots of women under, say the age of 45 or so, shaving or waxing all or most of it off has been the fashion for what seem like ever. If you get down to age...30? I have been told that there are men who have never seen a woman with pubic hair. And there are plenty of men who don't have any either. I am pretty sure than many of my older son's male friends shave or wax or whatever. My son is the only one of his peers with hairy legs. That can't be a coincidence.

 

Some of us have never done so and are back in style, lol. It's always been the 1970s in my pants.

 

(I feel like I should have that put on business cards and hand it out, lol)

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Thank you! In my pp, Martha Stewart was exactly who I was thinking about.  I am a good cook, I am an experienced cook and, frankly, have more technical experience than the average person.  I have worked in kitchens, I have taken professionally taught pastry classes, been asked to do a pastry apprenticeship etc. Martha drives me NUTS with her recipes. Or, at least she did. I gave up on them years ago.  She will have this beautiful picture, as always. And then these steps and the promise if you just follow her steps it will all be ok.  Well, no. There is always some step in there that is actually about 5 steps and it is usually something that is technically challenging and will fail the first couple times you do it.

 

 

TOTALLY agree on Martha Stewert's recipes.  I've given up on her.  That reminds me I probably have a couple cook books I could throw in the give away bin!

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I learned to cook using Everyday Food magazines and their first cookbook. It really isn't practical for our family size any more, but it was great for basic, healthy meals and had a lot of good technical tips. It was from Martha Stewart, and they had a show on PBS for awhile.

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Well, I'm not sure someone who has an afro would appreciate their hairstyle being compared to pubic hair, but I can't speak for them.

 

It simply means she isn't shaving or waxing her public hair off any longer. I don't see the need for euphemisms. If you are old enough to have pubic hair then you are old enough to talk about it, lol. For lots of women under, say the age of 45 or so, shaving or waxing all or most of it off has been the fashion for what seem like ever. If you get down to age...30? I have been told that there are men who have never seen a woman with pubic hair. And there are plenty of men who don't have any either. I am pretty sure than many of my older son's male friends shave or wax or whatever. My son is the only one of his peers with hairy legs. That can't be a coincidence.

 

Some of us have never done so and are back in style, lol. It's always been the 1970s in my pants.

 

(I feel like I should have that put on business cards and hand it out, lol)

Any of you see the Tina Fey/Maya Rudolph natural birthing sketch on SNL? Whole lotta '70's going on there!

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It simply means she isn't shaving or waxing her public hair off any longer. I don't see the need for euphemisms. If you are old enough to have pubic hair then you are old enough to talk about it, lol. For lots of women under, say the age of 45 or so, shaving or waxing all or most of it off has been the fashion for what seem like ever. If you get down to age...30? I have been told that there are men who have never seen a woman with pubic hair. And there are plenty of men who don't have any either. I am pretty sure than many of my older son's male friends shave or wax or whatever. My son is the only one of his peers with hairy legs. That can't be a coincidence.

 

Some of us have never done so and are back in style, lol. It's always been the 1970s in my pants.

 

(I feel like I should have that put on business cards and hand it out, lol)

 

Well, I'm way over 45 and I came of age in the 70s, so...

 

Ds shaves his underarms. When I first found out I was  :confused1:  but now I know it's common among his age group. He has had to school me on a number of things. Body hair and what young people do to it is among the strangest things we've discussed.

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What does that even mean? The bolded? I googled and nothing comes up. Do I even want to know????

 

 

:lol: :lol: :smilielol5: :smilielol5: I'm still chuckling over this one. Yeah, it would be much more bizarre than steaming.

It means her tea house has a thatched roof!

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Some of us have never done so and are back in style, lol. It's always been the 1970s in my pants.

 

(I feel like I should have that put on business cards and hand it out, lol)

 

How about a t-shirt? I'd buy it! Although I had a brief fling with higher levels of grooming I quickly determined that was not for me. I'm fairly certain my natural hairstyle down there is more attractive than either prickly stubble or razor burn,which was what I alternated with before. And my one waxing experience was worse than labor, and gave me a rash anyway, again not attractive. So now I shave just what escapes the bikini area. The stuff that is hidden by my underwear gets left to its own devices. My husband hasn't complained. 

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Ok, I am not a chia pudding person, but I know LOT of people who are.  They love them some chia pudding. And I can buy chia at my supermarket. For 8$ I can get a huge bag.  I have one. I use it sometimes in smoothies. And I can prob buy chia pudding at local restaurants. So, it's not that out there, depending on where you live. In fact, I looked up that chia ginger pudding and I could make it right now. I actually have all the stuff in the house, and it is super easy to make.

 

I'm not a Gwenyth fan, to say the least, but I have tried a couple of her recipes and they have always been very good. It KILLS me to say that, btw. I am a pretty harsh judge of cookbooks and the occasional recipe of hers that I have tried would mean that I might, say, pick up one of her cookbooks at a library sale. So, I would pay 5$, lol. FWIW, She did a cooking show with Mario Batali. She does know her way around a kitchen, again, that is something I say grudgingly. The only other nice thing I can say about Ms Paltrow is that she speaks flawless Castilian Spanish. It is a joy to hear.

 

Her cookbooks are prob most useful for people who have a lot of food sensitivities and the $$ to throw at it.

 

But I will laugh myself sick at the idea of her having ANY idea of what life is like for a 'busy mother'.  Just no.

 

I don't even know what chia is.  LOL

 

The pudding was even one of the more sane and tame items really. 

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Tea House??? Never heard it called a Tea House even on these forums :lol: :rofl:

You haven't been here long enough to remember the post about removing excess "carpeting" from the TeA room. Classic thread moment.

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I don't even know what chia is. LOL

 

The pudding was even one of the more sane and tame items really.

Yes you do! "Ch - ch - ch - chia"

 

The same seeds used to grow the chia head is what people are using as pudding. It gets all gummy when you get it wet, just like that stuff that makes disposable diapers absorbent. YUM!

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Yes you do! "Ch - ch - ch - chia"

 

The same seeds used to grow the chia head is what people are using as pudding. It gets all gummy when you get it wet, just like that stuff that makes disposable diapers absorbent. YUM!

 

eh, It depends on how much liquid you add to it.  but it can look vaguely like frog spawn in a drink, lol.

 

But you can sprinkle it on a salad or on top of broiled meat and it just adds a crunch.  It doesn't have to be frog spawn-y

 

 

But I do enjoy making a quart of green tea and adding a tablespoon of chia, just to see the look on the kids' faces. I am pretty sure my kids have some friends who think I am a witch, lol

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I have some good recipes from Jamie Oliver too but the last cook book I got of his was just annoying. It's buried on my shelf with the other cookbooks that see little use. One of his other books is on the shelf I read and use more often. Rachel Ray and Pioneer Woman finally went to St. Vincent De Paul's. My MIL likes to send me cookbooks but I have a firm cap on the shelf space allocated to cookbooks and so as new stuff comes in, old stuff goes out.

 

The best simple cook books I have found are by MaryAnn Vollstedt. Our favorite is her Big Book of Breakfast but her soup and stew book and her "What's for Dinner" book is also pretty good. Not a celebrity, just a reliable good cookbook author.

 

Thanks so much for this suggestion!

 

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