Most people have no idea how expensive it is not knowing how to cook.
I genuinely can’t understand why people complain about having no money and then spend $50 on $4 worth of food to have someone bring it to you in more time then it takes to make.
Someone somewhere right now is ordering pasta, the highest margin restaurant for item, at a 900% markup compared to basic ingredients in the store. And it takes longer. And tastes worse by the time it gets there.
You say that, but cafeterias and automats are usually wholly impersonal mass produced garbage like fast food in another wrapper. That’s what they were when they were new, a la carte prison food. They would bet slammed for not being authentic enough for some reason.
Sure, but fresh food is perishable, making this a more expensive prospect. Economies of scale doesn’t apply to a flat line of food waste. Fruits and veg only have so many days before they go off.
Chipotle used to be the single-cuisine version of exactly this, and look what happened to it. Chopt does all fresh veg and over 25 years only has 70 locations. And neither of these things are cheap.
I’d have no problem with that, of course. But that would do best in bigger cities, and there’s always going to be a significant advantage to knowing how to DIY. Specialization is for insects, never de-skill willingly.
It costs [your wage] to bake bread, if you start doing it daily instead of buying, and aren’t having fun. I’m pretty sure if it became price-competitive to home bake then society would collapse.
Yes I know the quality isn’t comparable, but what are we making? Sandwiches? Toast?
I can do the hydration math in my head and spend about six minutes of total active time making a crusty boule or a loaf of sandwich bread for about 60-80¢ of ingredients. You can substitute a lot of time for kneading, it’s easy as hell.
The quality isn’t comparable, it is price competitive, and if my not buying shitty bread did make society collapse, I would die of happiness.
Google says it’s $1.8 (ehh, mb, more like 2-3? you might have a point) on average for a loaf, so, even with your numbers, it’s not price competitive with buying at minimum wage (and those numbers assume expertise and ignore waiting time). Unless the bride prices are totally crazy these days?
I found buying premade dough from the store is cheaper than buying the cookies cooked in the store’s bakery but only barely. Buying cookies at those chain cookie shops or in the middle of the grocery store are always high though. I’m sure making the dough is the way to go as far as cost goes but haven’t tried it to do for the direct comparison.
Did you not have chocolate chip cookies on Germany until…the mid 2000s?
They’ve been like the default/staple home dessert in the US since like the 50s. They’re so engrained in Americans’ concept of home that realtors often toss some in the oven before a tour to convince potential buyers it feels like home based on the smell.
Incidentally, the pure chocolate chip cookie is most often sold as American Cookie!
But the cookie clicker was a pure associative jump I have to admit - it wasn’t my first contact with chocolate cookies :)
But traditionally the hike baked cookies have a huge variety especially around Christmas. There really are several items that I personally would not count as cookie but which are called that regionally apparently. Vanillekipferl from the south or Kokosmakronen from I have no idea where.
I had never heard of cookie clicker, assumed it was some youtube personality, and was vaguely annoyed at the implication that this imaginary person was somehow responsible for popularizing regular-ass chocolate chip cookies. Having investigated, I’m mystified by how such a “game” accrued any kind of success. I guess I’m flummoxed by the concept of idle games in general. May as well just watch a screensaver.
Anyhow, cookies are great, and easy to make! I like to use parchment paper for mine, but I used to have a silicone baking mat which also worked well. Neither are really necessary, though—just a humble cookie sheet is all you need.
Yeah that game was … A thing. I have very fond memories because it thought me a lot about JavaScript and system clock stuff.
Although I have to damit I also watched the pipe screensaver back in the days for way too long to “find the patterns”.
But on topic: I agree! And I learned a new term - very heard of a “cookie sheet” beforehand. Thank you!
Cookies aren’t even that difficult to make yourself…
It’s crazy how expensive it is not knowing how to bake, if you like good bread.
Most people have no idea how expensive it is not knowing how to cook.
I genuinely can’t understand why people complain about having no money and then spend $50 on $4 worth of food to have someone bring it to you in more time then it takes to make.
Someone somewhere right now is ordering pasta, the highest margin restaurant for item, at a 900% markup compared to basic ingredients in the store. And it takes longer. And tastes worse by the time it gets there.
What we want are cafeterias and automats.
What we get are finely crafted artisan pasta experiences, and empty closed buildings, but nothing in between.
You say that, but cafeterias and automats are usually wholly impersonal mass produced garbage like fast food in another wrapper. That’s what they were when they were new, a la carte prison food. They would bet slammed for not being authentic enough for some reason.
But I don’t want garbage. I want inauthentic mass-produced healthy food - economies of scale.
Sure, but fresh food is perishable, making this a more expensive prospect. Economies of scale doesn’t apply to a flat line of food waste. Fruits and veg only have so many days before they go off.
Chipotle used to be the single-cuisine version of exactly this, and look what happened to it. Chopt does all fresh veg and over 25 years only has 70 locations. And neither of these things are cheap.
I’d have no problem with that, of course. But that would do best in bigger cities, and there’s always going to be a significant advantage to knowing how to DIY. Specialization is for insects, never de-skill willingly.
It costs [your wage] to bake bread, if you start doing it daily instead of buying, and aren’t having fun. I’m pretty sure if it became price-competitive to home bake then society would collapse.
Yes I know the quality isn’t comparable, but what are we making? Sandwiches? Toast?
I can do the hydration math in my head and spend about six minutes of total active time making a crusty boule or a loaf of sandwich bread for about 60-80¢ of ingredients. You can substitute a lot of time for kneading, it’s easy as hell.
The quality isn’t comparable, it is price competitive, and if my not buying shitty bread did make society collapse, I would die of happiness.
Wait, why tf were we using American currency if neither of us are American 😭 Were those supposed to be Euro cents?
I’m a fake Brit, basically. Sorry lmao I thought the cents symbol was generally applicable to pence.
So…
Ingredients $0.7
US minimum wage is $11.80.
6 minutes is 1/10 of an hour.
$11.8 / 10 = $1.18
$1.18 + $0.70 = $1.9
Google says it’s
$1.8(ehh, mb, more like 2-3? you might have a point) on average for a loaf, so, even with your numbers, it’s not price competitive with buying at minimum wage (and those numbers assume expertise and ignore waiting time). Unless the bride prices are totally crazy these days?Not apples to apples there, the cheap bread isn’t as nice as mine, nor as fresh. Typical example:
I found buying premade dough from the store is cheaper than buying the cookies cooked in the store’s bakery but only barely. Buying cookies at those chain cookie shops or in the middle of the grocery store are always high though. I’m sure making the dough is the way to go as far as cost goes but haven’t tried it to do for the direct comparison.
They’re not either that easy to make to be really good.
Then you’re doing it wrong?
It’s a few ingredients mixed in a bowl, then slapped on a baking sheet. It’s one of the simplest baked goods you can make.
Did I said they were hard to make? They’re easy as you said, but until you practice a lot and use good ingredients they’re going to be meh.
That’s what I thought you said. What you wrote was not easy to interpret.
“cookie” I assume is not easily translatable I assume just to be optimistic about the “not easy” part.
At least in German, the direct translation “Keks” can be cream filled monstrosities with nuts on top and … I’m going shopping, see you later!
But the run-of-the-mill cookie that cookie clicker made famous … Yeah, an oven, a bowl and if you’re lazy an electric mixer.
I’ll estimate that anyone will need a maximum of four tries and they’ll get it.
Did you not have chocolate chip cookies on Germany until…the mid 2000s?
They’ve been like the default/staple home dessert in the US since like the 50s. They’re so engrained in Americans’ concept of home that realtors often toss some in the oven before a tour to convince potential buyers it feels like home based on the smell.
Incidentally, the pure chocolate chip cookie is most often sold as American Cookie!
But the cookie clicker was a pure associative jump I have to admit - it wasn’t my first contact with chocolate cookies :)
But traditionally the hike baked cookies have a huge variety especially around Christmas. There really are several items that I personally would not count as cookie but which are called that regionally apparently. Vanillekipferl from the south or Kokosmakronen from I have no idea where.
I had never heard of cookie clicker, assumed it was some youtube personality, and was vaguely annoyed at the implication that this imaginary person was somehow responsible for popularizing regular-ass chocolate chip cookies. Having investigated, I’m mystified by how such a “game” accrued any kind of success. I guess I’m flummoxed by the concept of idle games in general. May as well just watch a screensaver.
Anyhow, cookies are great, and easy to make! I like to use parchment paper for mine, but I used to have a silicone baking mat which also worked well. Neither are really necessary, though—just a humble cookie sheet is all you need.
Yeah that game was … A thing. I have very fond memories because it thought me a lot about JavaScript and system clock stuff. Although I have to damit I also watched the pipe screensaver back in the days for way too long to “find the patterns”.
But on topic: I agree! And I learned a new term - very heard of a “cookie sheet” beforehand. Thank you!