Someone linked here to an article about inflation in US some time ago. It was talking about an older lady that couldn’t make cookies any more because the pre-made cookie mix she uses has different size now and her recipe doesn’t work. It was just mind boggling to me. Cooking and baking is not that difficult. I’m just an IT guy and I can bake. You just follow the recipe, it’s not rocket science. If older generations can’t follow a cookie mix recipe I don’t even want to imagine what young people eat.
And more on the topic. I do check ingredients on most things I buy and if I can’t find something without preservatives I just make it. Yesterday I was making tortillas for tacos because the ones in stores have lots of additives. It’s really simple but definitely more difficult than cookie mix recipe.
My grandmother was a great cook and also liked to cook, but she still needed my grandfather to do the very basic math to convert the recipe ratios in function of the amount of guests. She wasn’t stupid, she just left school at 13yo to help in the house and the only math that she did after that was counting.
All that to say: It’s not because it’s easy for you, that it’s easy for everyone.
I think the level of basic education in US is another issue and it’s possible both have impact here. My mother only finished primary school in some tiny village in the middle of nowhere in communist Poland and still has broad general knowledge, likes to read books and yes, can scale recipes without issues.
I’m pretty sure the new recipe in printed on the box. You can also look up new recipe that doesn’t use the mix and just follow it. What I mean is that is someone only knows one recipe by heart and is unable to learn a new one it means they can’t cook and if old people can’t cook then well… the skill of cooking in the society must be completely gone by now.
All the Boomers’ recipes were designed to use boxed, processed ingredients. Think green bean casserole with Campbell’s® Cream Of Mushroom Soup and French’s® Original Crispy Fried Onions, for example. “Modern” “convenience foods” were all the rage when they were growing up and it shows.
In USA right? My grandparents (which would have been boomers if I’m not mistaken) here in Europe have never been seen using that kind of crap. They were doing their cans and crap and all kind of horrific preservation methods but they always did 100%.
They, and my parents as well, had cooking courses in school.
They were also very much into foraging, hunting, fishing… all due to living through and after the war.
Someone linked here to an article about inflation in US some time ago. It was talking about an older lady that couldn’t make cookies any more because the pre-made cookie mix she uses has different size now and her recipe doesn’t work. It was just mind boggling to me. Cooking and baking is not that difficult. I’m just an IT guy and I can bake. You just follow the recipe, it’s not rocket science. If older generations can’t follow a cookie mix recipe I don’t even want to imagine what young people eat.
And more on the topic. I do check ingredients on most things I buy and if I can’t find something without preservatives I just make it. Yesterday I was making tortillas for tacos because the ones in stores have lots of additives. It’s really simple but definitely more difficult than cookie mix recipe.
My grandmother was a great cook and also liked to cook, but she still needed my grandfather to do the very basic math to convert the recipe ratios in function of the amount of guests. She wasn’t stupid, she just left school at 13yo to help in the house and the only math that she did after that was counting.
All that to say: It’s not because it’s easy for you, that it’s easy for everyone.
I think the level of basic education in US is another issue and it’s possible both have impact here. My mother only finished primary school in some tiny village in the middle of nowhere in communist Poland and still has broad general knowledge, likes to read books and yes, can scale recipes without issues.
most people can’t follow directions. let alone do fractional math conversions that are required for converting recipies.
I’m pretty sure the new recipe in printed on the box. You can also look up new recipe that doesn’t use the mix and just follow it. What I mean is that is someone only knows one recipe by heart and is unable to learn a new one it means they can’t cook and if old people can’t cook then well… the skill of cooking in the society must be completely gone by now.
you are making assumptions that people can do what you can do, or that they are willing/want to do it.
they can’t/don’t.
other people aren’t you.
I’m not assuming people can cook. My whole point is that they can’t.
All the Boomers’ recipes were designed to use boxed, processed ingredients. Think green bean casserole with Campbell’s® Cream Of Mushroom Soup and French’s® Original Crispy Fried Onions, for example. “Modern” “convenience foods” were all the rage when they were growing up and it shows.
In USA right? My grandparents (which would have been boomers if I’m not mistaken) here in Europe have never been seen using that kind of crap. They were doing their cans and crap and all kind of horrific preservation methods but they always did 100%. They, and my parents as well, had cooking courses in school. They were also very much into foraging, hunting, fishing… all due to living through and after the war.
Yeah, I hit the same thing with a chocolate cheesecake recipe of mine. It calls for a 12 ounce bag of miniature chocolate chips.
The “good” brand chips are all 10 ounce and 20 ounce bags now. Fortunately I found a store brand that was 12 ounces.
I do have a kitchen scale so it would have been possible to buy the 20 ounce bag and measure out 12 ounces…but still!