to be irritated by recipes that...

[flimflammum]

assume you have a food processor / blender / electric whisk / whatever. Surely they should give an alternative method for making it by hand? Or is it just me?

ones that annoy me are where they state
"put into a clean bowl/pan " etc. Naaahh..I'll use a git filthy one thank you

This annoys me to I must admit. I don't have a blender and I'm always unsure if my food preocessor will do the same thing.

I hate recipes that talk about cups
I ahve some tiny egg cup sized cups with a cow pattern on them, to huge ones that are really oddly shaped bowls. SO which is it?

If you don't ahve a measuring cup use a standard size coffee mug. Its about 250ml

ooh yes, the cups. just give a weight fgs

Stealth, I was just about to say the same thing. I have coffee mugs or those plastic children's cups from ikea, which is it?!

Actually, once I bought a set of standard measuring cups and spoons, I found cup measurements really useful and easier than faffing around with scales.

but surely a cup is a certain no of mls?? If it;s 250 that;'s wonderful, I can do that!
Surprised though, my large (but not huge) mugs are just over 200

It is 250mls

As paulaplumpbottom said, a cup is 250ml. This is handy.

I try to avoid converting, because at some point through the recipe I know that I WILL confuse volume and weight - but I'm a bit thick when it comes to these things.

thank you, I will remember that
why don't they just SAY

It may be more trouble to weigh out ingredients,but when baking, I think it's worth it.

There can be considerable variation between two cup measurements, even when using the same vessel and same ingredient. It could be 125g the first time and 140 the second.

thank you, same for teaspoon, table spoon, dessert spoon - that'll be helpful
Obviously I know which one the tea spoons are but other than that it's all fish forks to me

actually I'm making gingerbread at the moment and need a tablespoon - are they the ones I'd use to eat ice cream or the bigger ones I'd use to serve vegetables?

The recipes with cups are american who for some reason don't do weights and the cups sizes are standard.

I do have a lovely cypriot cook book which I bought in cyprus and says things like a glass of wine or vinigar with no guidance whatsoever to the size.

oh yes, I have still to locate star anise anywhere...I think they made it up

I hate recipes in magazines that say 'preparation time: 10 mins' and then the first instruction is 'marinade the chicken for 30 mins.'.

not to mention
Feeds 20
as what - a canape?

Stealth, it's the largest spoon you want. A dessertspoon is the one you would use to eat cereal and, um, dessert.

There isn't much you can't do with a fork.

You can get star anise in the herbs and spices bit of my local supermarket, and I live in the bog end of nowhere.

or, "Fife".

What is a vegetable serving spoon to you is an ice-cream eating spoon to me. It's all relative.

I found star anise in my local wholefood shop (it's the only place around here that sells Marigold stock powder). It is my new favourite ingredient.

'Tis far from that I was reared though, as they say in these parts.