I'm going to forget about this if I don't post it now

I already talked about how I genuinely enjoy reading the question forums on www.wordreference.com because I a. can learn some more foreign words from there and b. it's pretty funny and revealing.

The same goes for recipes. I love reading recipes when I'm stressed out because there's something really relaxing about reading how to make an orange sauce or that one may instead want to substitute some wheat flour for some of the white flour. The reviews of the recipes on epicurious.com provide an endless source of entertainment for me, with some of the reviewers modifying recipes until basically only one original ingredient called for in the recipe remains, and THEN the reviewer gives the recipe four forks.

This is the following exchange I saw for a recipe for a shortbread base:

nadiat

Usually Gourmet's recipes are quite specific, so I'm surprised that they did not specify the temperature of the butter. Should it be room temperature? Chilled?

12/19/05
buddy7744 from Madison, WI

In response to the review from nadiat, you use the ingredients as they come (in this case cold UNSALTED butter from the refrigerator) and the crust recipe turns out fine. I have made the pecan bars many times with this crust and have always gotten rave reviews. Perhaps you need a bit more cooking experience before you send in a bad review of a good recipe.

12/08/06
cassellie from Philadelphia

Response to Buddy7744 for his/her response to Nadiat's post. Nadiat asked an honest question. The option we have to review or to comment is to help fellow cooks/bakers. There is no need to belittle someone or to somehow elevate yourself as a "more experienced" cook. There was nothing negative about the question, but it is noted that we are invited to post comments, positive or negative... Presumably without being insulted for doing so. Let's keep these reviews in the spirit they were intended to be and let no one ever feel they cannot ask a question for fear of ridicule.

It's very rare that people are at each other's throats on epicurious. But with a little imagination I can picture the be-aproned housewives standing in front of their computers with meat cleaver in hand, narrowing their eyes in suspicion over "Alphamom from Denver"'s half-butter half-lard suggestion instead of their time-tested habit of using only lard.