A young friend visited this week – well, he is 33, but I consider that young. And I have known him since he was born, on and off, so that makes him young to me. I seem to have quite a few friends that age – how odd….
Anyway, I bought a treacle tart from one of the large supermarkets for us to have with ice-cream for a pudding. I love hot treacle tart with cold ice-cream but treacle tarts are always too big to buy for one. I suppose I could make a small one just for me – maybe? Or, knowing my cooking, maybe not…. Fortunately, my friend does like the same combination, but I am not sure that was much of a consideration.
So, when I came to cook it, the instructions said it should be in the oven for twenty-one minutes. Not just 20, not 25, but 21! How can they be so precise? I doubt if every oven is exactly the temperature stated – I have certainly never checked mine. And who remembers to take it out at exactly the right time? Do you think it would have been under-cooked if I had only left it for 20 minutes? But what if my oven wasn’t hot enough? Do you think I would have burnt it if it had been left for 25 minutes, or 23? What if the oven was too hot?
And then it says: “All ovens vary in performance. This is a guide only”!! So, in that case wouldn’t 20 minutes do? They know that ovens vary and can only give a guide, so to be so precise does not make sense. I find it all very weird.
My friend and I had a discussion about it and it is his fault that it is in this blog – he suggested it.