I had never heard of nor tasted bay leaf. I had crumbled the leaf into the stew...which made it really hard to take out. I don't remember the cookbook (probably the 1968 edition) saying anything about taking out the leaf. Or maybe I didn't read that far before throwing it in!
I don't care for the flavor of bay leaf. Guess I got too much in there...or bit on a piece...who knows?
I don't remember.