Problems With Being A Cook
by Thomas Jorgensen
http://www.cookingflair.com
We've all done it. The meal for the evening is organised in
your head, and, you believe, in the fridge; but then just
as you're well underway with everything, you go to the
cupboard and you find you're missing a vital ingredient.
However close the grocery store might be, it's still too
far; it means leaving the kitchen and other things could
spoil. If this has ever happened to you, you may find the
following tips helpful.
For instance, instead of one teaspoon of baking powder you
could use one quarter of a teaspoon of baking soda plus
five eighths of a teaspoon of cream of tartar, or,
alternatively, one quarter of a teaspoon of baking soda and
half a cup of buttermilk. One cup of butter can be replaced
by seven eighths of a cup of shortening or one cup of
margarine. But remember that oil can rarely replace butter,
particularly when baking.
Sugar is a wonderfully sweet ingredient in so many of our
favorite treats. There are a number of alternatives you
can use if you are running low on a particular type of
sugar of just want to try something new for a change. For
1 cup of light brown sugar, you can substitute 1 cup of
white sugar and 1 teaspoon molasses. For 1 cup of dark
brown sugar, you can substitute 1 cup of white sugar and 1
tablespoon of molasses. One cup of white sugar can be
replaced with either 1 3/4 cups of powdered
(confectioners') sugar or 1 cup of packed brown sugar.
Sweet liquids like corn syrup can be substituted with 1 cup
sugar plus 1/4 cup liquid or honey.
If you need chocolate you'll find that one ounce of is the
same as three tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa and one
tablespoon of fat. For one tablespoon of cornstarch you
could use two tablespoons of flour; one tablespoon of flour
(for thickening) could be replaced by half a tablespoon of
cornstarch, and instead of one cup sifted flour (for
cooking) you could use one and a half cups of bread crumbs
or one cup of rolled oats and lastly, one cup of shortening
makes the same as one cup and two tablespoons butter or
margarine.
Spices are a common addition when cooking to add flavor.
Cooks who love to experiment and season their food
regularly can run out of their favorite spices quite often.
There are some quick substitutes you can use to bring out
the tastes you want. For 1 clove of garlic you can
substitute 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 clove of garlic
can be substituted with 1 teaspoon of chopped garlic, 1
teaspoon of dry mustard can be replaced with 1 tablespoon
of prepared mustard, 1 tablespoon of onion powder can be
substituted with 1 medium chopped onion and 1 tablespoon of
onion powder also equals 4 tablespoons of fresh chopped
onion.
The substitutions listed here are only a few of the many
available for quick fixings. Sometimes a little common
sense and ingenuity are all you need to make quick
adjustments in any recipe.
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