CashsMom ... For the small/large onion thing ... I just kind of go, hhmmmmm how much onion do I really want in there!
Watson ... or how about all the old recipes that along with the pinches, dashes and such ... never tell you to bake/cook it. You're just supposed to know.......and of course, no temp settings, being that the old wood stoves had no setting. All dependable on the wood to create the fire, and how much you had in there! .... Meanwhile I am laughing at your jerk chef!!! Do you still see him that way? Or has he been redeemed with your own experiences?
All ... Recipes are only guides!