Frequently Asked Questions

Contact

I have a recipe question. And I have an answer for you, or at least, I hope I do. I get a lot of recipe questions via email and although I try to respond to them, between you and me, it’s much better for everyone involved if you leave your question in the comment section of that recipe. I always read new comments, no matter how old the post is and will respond to a published comment much faster than an email. Plus, anyone else with your question — and there is another person with it, always — can save themselves the trouble.
I emailed you and you didn’t respond. Oh dear. There was a time when I prided myself on having the manners and common decency to answer every email (that was not trying to sell me male enhancers) that crossed my inbox’s threshold. At some point along the way, it has become impossible for me to keep up. I read every email I receive, often twice. I save every recipe anyone sends me. I try to answer pressing questions. But? Responding is no longer my strong suit. Here, I’ve added a few tips to make email more effective for all of us.
I contacted you through Twitter/Flickr/Facebook/LinkedIn and you didn’t respond. To be completely honest, it is impossible for me to manage multiple inboxes at once, so I focus my energies on one. If you email me through the main address for this site [the smitten at gmail dot com], I will respond.
I work in PR/ marketing/ product services/ community outreach/ advertising for a company that makes something your readers would love, can I send you a sample? Thank you, but I don’t do product reviews on Smitten Kitchen or accept any free stuff. The reason is that I couldn’t imagine even suggesting that someone consider shelling out for something when I didn’t do the same. I buy what I like and I talk about things as they seem fit; this system works a lot better for me, and seems far more honest to readers.
I would like to advertise on your site. Why thank you! However, advertising on Smitten Kitchen is handled by Martha Stewart’s Circle Network. Send any ad-related inquiries to Mark Ganem, MGanem@marthastewart.com.

Logistics

Do you have a recipe for… ? The two easiest ways to find content on Smitten Kitchen are to use the Google search box at the top left corner of every page, just below the logo, or to use the Recipe Index and browse by Category, Season, Fruit or Vegetable.
How do I print a recipe? You can print any recipe with the post’s top photo by clicking the “Print” link at the bottom of each post. [It comes before the ad and the comments begin and it looks like this.] In many browsers you have the additional option of simply highlighting the text that you want to print, and from your Print menu, choosing “Print Selection”. This is great if you just need to grab the ingredient list or recipe portion of a post, but don’t want the photo.
How do I email a recipe? You can email any post to yourself or someone else by clicking on the email link at the bottom of each entry, before the ad and the comments begin. It looks like this.
Can you unsubscribe me from your newsletter? If you are subscribed to receive emailed versions of Smitten Kitchen posts, it is because you signed up for it through a link in the sidebar. To unsubscribe, simply click the “Click here to safely unsubscribe now” link at the bottom of any of the emails you receive, and you will be instantly removed from mailings.
Who designed this site? I did before launching it in 2006, mostly because I’m unhealthily particular about the way I think everything should be. Also, CSS is fun.
What kind of publishing software do you use? Who hosts your site? Smitten Kitchen is run on Wordpress software that has been souped up with a zillion (actual number) plugins. It is hosted by LiquidWeb.
Your site is fraught with errors and as an editor/copy editor/grammar junkie I feel it is my obligation to send you a list of every one of them. First, I appreciate it because mistakes make me cringe (er, once I see them). Second, Smitten Kitchen is more or less a one person operation, run by a very imperfect human being spinning out thousands of words a week. With this level of output, the odds of typos slipping in are extremely high. And although I’ve made peace with that, much thanks and gratitude goes out to my father (who occasionally comments as “SantaDad”), a grammar junkie just like you who recently has taken to back-editing his daughter’s work and hopefully saving us all from adding more “inches” of salt to recipes while mixing batters with a light “hang”!

Photos

What kind of camera do you use? What lenses? Check out Our Approach to Food Photos, where we detail what we’re looking for in a picture and list the cameras and lenses we’re using these days.
Can I run one of your photos on my site? Unfortunately, no. My photos are my work, work that I sell, and I can’t allow them to be republished if they haven’t been purchased first (see the next two bullet points for how to go about this). They’re also copyrighted, thus when I see them run without my permission, I get a mini-seizure (I get a lot of mini-seizures, unfortunately) and am forced to spend parts of my day exasperated, sending firmly-worded notes and all sorts of unpleasantries when I’d much rather be baking us cookies.
I want to buy a print. We’ve set up a small, and (we hope) very reasonably priced print shop through SmugMug. If you’d like to buy a print you don’t see there, please email me and we’ll be happy to upload it for you.
I want to buy a full-size download of one of your photos. A limited selection of my photos are available through Getty Images. If you don’t see what you’d like there, email me with a link the photo you’d like and we’ll find a reasonable price. The transaction will then be run through our SmugMug shop.

Recipes and Cooking

Why didn’t this recipe work for me? Can I say this? Promise not to take it the wrong way? I have no idea. The very difficult thing is, I am not in the kitchen with you. I don’t know if your ingredients were fresh, measured correctly, if your oven is properly calibrated, if you forgot to set the timer, if you swapped an ingredient for another one that probably caused the dish’s demise, if your ingredients were at room temperature, if the bowl where you whipped the egg whites was clean and dry, or if the cooking faeries were just not in the kitchen with you that day. And that list of possible things that can go wrong is just the tip of the iceberg. Here’s what I can tell you: First, consider all of the variables listed above, and understand that even one of them can change the outcome of a recipe. Second, do understand that if I say a recipe worked in my kitchen — and unless you see said recipe filed under “Disasters”, that is what I am saying when I suggest you try something out — it means that I feel confident that if you make it as written, it will work for you too. From this side of your computer, it’s really the best I can offer you. Hm, did that sound frustrated? It’s true, it drives me bonkers when a recipe I consider worth laminating and framing flops in someone else’s kitchen and I only wish I could get to the bottom of it every time. I am working on that skill. I will patent it when it’s ready.
I need this recipe in grams/I only have extra-large eggs/How many ounces in a pound? etc. You’re in luck. I’ve created a Cooking Conversions & Equivalents page that is replete with an measurement/weight converter and a list of common ingredient substitutions.
How do you measure your flour? [Added 4/10] I’m a spoon then sweep kinda gal (meaning that I gently spoon my flour into the measuring cup until it heaps over the top and then use a knife or spatula to sweep it flat). My cups generally weigh in between 4 1/4 and 4 1/2 ounces. Do you find this question utterly exacting and of dubious urgency? It is understandable, especially as there is no “wrong” way to do so. However, the method used (packing flour into cups versus scooping the cup into flour versus spooning flour into the cup, etc.) can yield cups of flour with widely differing weights, anywhere from 4 to 6 ounces! Thus it can be helpful to know the way a cookbook author/food writer/blogger did as they created their recipe. Did this stress you out because you’re not sure how every other cookbook author/food writer/blogger creates their recipes? Fret not. Most people are either scoop-and-sweepers or spoon-and-sweepers, which only produce slightly varying weights. And unless you’re getting into large flour quantities (5 cups, 10 cups, etc.) it’s rare that a slight differential will make a dramatic difference. Happy sweeping!
Can I substitute ___ for ___ in this recipe? As much as I wish I were able to, it’s just not conceivable for me to rework every recipe to fit every diet limitation. If I have a hunch that it won’t cause any disasters, I will say so but the disclaimer is always that if I haven’t tested in it my kitchen, I can’t really vouch for the results. That said, if you find a substitution or adaptation of a recipe that works well please share it with us in the comments — I bet other commenters will appreciate it as much as I do.
Can you suggest a wine or beer pairing for your recipes? Eh. I love wine and beer with my meals but I’m never going to be the type who tells you that you can’t drink a Chinon with a salad course. I think everyone should drink what they like. Uninspired by what you’re drinking? Go to a wine tasting and find some new favorites.
How come you don’t have ___ recipes? Although with an ever-growing Recipe Index it can begin to look this way, the fact is that the Smitten Kitchen will never been an exhaustive recipe site. More accurately, it could be titled “things we’ve cooked that we wanted to tell you about.” Have a recipe you think we’d be all over? By all means, send it to me. I am always in search of new ideas.
Do you have a favorite cookbook? No, I don’t. But I think I could survive on a desert island cooking from Mastering the Art of French Cooking alone. A dessert island with an endless supply of cheese and wine and butter. So basically I’m not talking about an island, I’m talking about Paris.
How do you keep track of recipes? I use Google Documents. I have a couple documents full of categories of web links (i.e. “check out Heidi’s cauliflower popcorn“), written references to cookbook pages (i.e. “Reichl’s raspberry tart from Tender at the Bone”) and notes for myself about things I want to try (i.e. “Cinco de Mayo dinner party ideas”). It’s not the most straightforward system but it works for me, largely because Google Docs are awesome and can be accessed from any computer or my iPhone (so useful when you’re at the grocery store). I also share my cooking ideas document with my other half, so he can help me answer the “what should we have for dinner” question, even when he’s at work.
Can I write about one of your recipes on my site? But of course, and I appreciate it. All I ask is that you identify smittenkitchen.com as the place you found the recipe, that you only reprint a recipe you’ve actually tried and that you use your own photos and put the recipe in your own words — something I am sure your readers will appreciate too.
How do recipe copyrights work? Welcome to the most frequently asked of all the frequently asked questions in the history of food writing, or, in short, great question! Here’s the official word from the U.S. Copyright Office: “A mere listing of ingredients is not protected under copyright law. However, where a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a collection of recipes as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection.” Got that? Ingredient lists? Not copyrighted. Directions and added instructions? Copyrighted. Reprinting a recipe word for word? A copyright violation. That’s about as clear as it gets. More questions? Keep reading…
Do I still have to list smittenkitchen.com as the source of the recipe if you yourself adapted it from another source? Yes, you should, something along the lines of “Recipe from smittenkitchen.com where it was adapted it from [The Name of the Cookbook, Magazine or Publication]. Why? Because I generally change almost everything about a recipe before I share it with you, and to only source my source, i.e. The Name of the Cookbook, Magazine or Publication, might end up looking nothing like what you’re adapting it from and everything like a Smitten Kitchen post. Plus, awkward, as if you cut and paste fully, you’ll might find notes near the baking time of an SK recipe about how “some little Jacob guy pulled down a stack of books and when I was cleaning them up, I forgot to check the time the cupcakes were finished” which would be especially strange coming from [The Name of the Cookbook, Magazine or Publication], yes?
Do I need permission to adapt a recipe from another source? No, you do not. But it is in good form to acknowledge the source.
What if I want to run an existing recipe on my own blog? You are welcome to run the ingredient list as-is, but you should put the directions in your own language and add your own tips. By doing this, you are creating a new piece of work, not just creating an infringed copy of what is already out there. [See above: Can I write about one of your recipes on my site?]
“Deb, you use the phrase ‘Adapted from’ in many of your recipe sources. What does this mean?” In most cases, what it means is that I am being gracious. In the vast majority of recipes (the exceptions being where I’ve used the phrase “Adapted, barely” and very early recipes on the site, where I was less versed in copyright etiquette and am slowly getting things into proper form), I’ve changed many, many things — ingredient levels, some mixing instructions, cooking temperatures and times, added several notes and extra tips — enough that the recipe is legitimately “new”. But, out of respect for the place where I started my hunt for the dish, and out of a stubborn belief that it’s in bad form to pretend you were the first one to ever rub butter into flour, I like to give shout-outs to places that got me started on the path to what I wanted to achieve in the kitchen.

Kitchen Stuff

I am creating my wedding registry/setting up my first kitchen, what do you think I need? Updated 12/09: I finally created a guide to the most practical, beloved items in my kitchen, just for people like you. [Build Your Own Smitten Kitchen]
Should I buy a KitchenAid? How about a food processor? Recommending kitchen stuff is always tough for me because what I can’t live without and what you can’t live without may be very different things depending on what and how we like to cook. My advice is to figure out what drives you the most crazy that you don’t have and go from there — there’s nothing worse than preemptively assuming you’ll need something only for it to collect dust. Personally, I can live without my KitchenAid (but was sure glad I didn’t have to when I made a wedding cake) but would be lost without my food processor. Here’s why:
- Just about everything I do in the Kitchen Aid can be done with an inexpensive hand mixer, and certain things, like kneading dough, I do by hand half the time anyway, just because I like to and I’m weird like that. (Do keep in mind, however, that you can get attachments — like a citrus juicer, pasta roller, meat grinder and ice cream bowl — that will make it more useful, and less of a one-trick pony.)
- But the food processor can shred a block of cheese or potato, slice a head of cabbage into slaw and grind nuts to a powder in seconds, heck, I even make biscuits in there — it saves me so much time and all things considered, doesn’t have much of a footprint encroaching on counter space.
- One last tip: For a long time, I made do with a combination miniature food processor that shared a base with a blender. It was the greatest thing for a tiny kitchen, ~~and for the life of me I will never understand why Cuisinart discontinued it~~. Thanks be to reader Katherine for finding this online!
Where’d you get those spice containers? Everything you’d ever want to know about the new and old ones, right here.

Blogging

I want to start my own blog, how do I do it? There are dozens of different free blog platforms out there these days, however I have personally been most impressed with Wordpress, as it seems to make it easiest to get started. Your blog will be up in seconds.
How do I build an audience? If you enjoy what you’re doing, are excited about sharing your knowledge with others and can convey that to readers, an audience will without doubt follow.
Will you link me? Can we exchange links? My Good Reads list is published directly from my RSS reader. My hope is that generating the page this way will mean that it is always an accurate reflection of what I am reading these days, sharing sites you might enjoy as well. So, link exchanges are out of the question (and you shouldn’t do them either, frankly), however if you have a new or even established site that you want to bring to my attention, by all means, please share it with me. I love finding new, excellent sites to read.

Etceteras

Are you a vegetarian? I thought you were and then you posted a short ribs recipe and I was confused. No, not a vegetarian. Not in the least. However, I was a vegetarian for about 15 years (a very opinionated 13 year-old, you see), coming back into the carnivorous fold about five years ago. That said, all of that time definitely changed my orientation towards eating; I generally consider meat a side dish and the number of vegetarian recipes on this site greatly outmatch those for meat-eaters.
You bake so many cakes and cookies. Do you weigh 300 pounds? Not even close, though I don’t think anyone is going to mistake me for malnourished in this lifetime! Something that is less clear on the site is the distinction that we make between rich and healthier foods. Healthier foods are what we eat on a daily basis at home. The desserts and rich braised short ribs and macaronis with cheese are almost always reserved for dinner parties or parties where desserts have been requested. I’m not saying that this is what others should do but this system, for the most part, works for us. Biggest disasters? Last minute party cancellations leaving us home with a pan of chocolate brownies. That we try to hide in the freezer. Only to learn that brownies taste better frozen. Sigh.
Do you have a favorite food? Artichokes. Pommes frites. Bourbon. (Yes, bourbon counts as food in the Smitten Kitchen.)
Where else do you write? As a freelancer in a recession, I write for whomever wants to pay me — ha. But really, I have written for a slew of publications and a simple Google-ing of “Deb/orah Perelman” will no likely yield a few clips, most of them incredibly boring. The food-related clips are often noted in these entries.
I am coming to NYC — where should I eat? In May 2011, I began sharing a list of foods I’d recently become obsessed with in New York City. See: Deb’s New York.