There are lots of potential errors a home cook can make, whether mistaking a bulb of garlic for a clove or experimenting with a banana sauce for pork. Here are some culinary experiments to avoid

I’m very fond of steamed vegetables with lemon and black pepper. When I was pregnant, my loving partner took it upon himself to cook for me. We didn’t have any lemons. We did have kiwis. He proudly presented me with a dish of broccoli and kiwi. And, in his wisdom, he decided to boil the sliced kiwi with the broccoli, for rather longer than was necessary. His hope (he explained later) was that the broccoli would become “infused” with the kiwi flavour. Strangely, the opposite happened. The meal was rather bland, overcooked broccoli accompanied by broccoli-flavoured semi-transparent kiwi mush. My partner maintains he is a “visionary” aligned with Heston Blumenthal. I continue to disagree. Liz, Bath

I had bought my first home as a young soldier. I was a physical training instructor so invited the rest of the gym team to my house for a veggie lasagne. It was the first meal I’d cooked from a recipe and I thought two cloves of garlic meant two bulbs. Cue the amazing smells, mostly garlic, for some reason. I served it with much panache to the guys. Then watched their faces as they and their taste buds slowly died inside. Still oblivious, I tucked into mine only to experience my soul leave my body and look down on a lot of people drinking as much fluid as possible. Paul, 65, wildlife photographer, Powys, Cymru

From Interrailing around Europe to trekking in the Himalayas, our tipsters share their memorable trips made later in life
• Tell us about a great winter mountain holiday – the best tip wins a £200 holiday voucher

I went Interrailing at 16 – so decided to do it again at 61! My wife and I bought our passes for all of Europe (under £500 for one-month unlimited rail trips) and it was great to rediscover the sense of freedom and adventure travelling by train gave. Having a romantic dinner in Paris, getting on the night train and having coffee and croissants for breakfast in Nice on the Côte d’Azur for example. I corrected the teenage mistake of trying to do too much and see too many places so we lingered longer in places such as Poland and Romania, soaking up the atmosphere in Wrocław and Bucharest. It was interesting to compare the speed, quality and comfort of train services too. We found that sometimes slow travel was better – like when we got on the wrong train from Rome to Naples, allowing us to appreciate the scenery, locals and way of life of people who were not in a hurry. The trip was a learning experience at 61 as much as it had been at 16.
Peter

After Guardian writers shared their picks, readers responded with films including Gravity, Paranormal Activity and The Road

When the film ended suddenly and silently I found I was gripping the seat armrests and noticed too that nobody moved. I can’t remember a cinema experience where literally nobody moved after a film ended. It was dead quiet for several seconds, I am guessing that many if not most of the audience had actually witnessed the real event on 9/11 on TV, as I had. Visceral cinema a bit too close to the bone, yet sensitive, nonexploitative and direction as tight as it gets. waxanimal