Every good cook needs to know good substitutes

One thing about cooking that people need to know is that it's okay if you don't have everything the recipe calls for...be creative.

For example, just the other day I made a polenta which is usually made of cornstarch...but I only had whole wheat flour on hand. Did it look like polenta made from cornstarch? No. Did it taste like polenta made from cornstarch? Probably not exactly. Did it still taste good? Yes!

Here is a list of substitutes from a book I like to visit from time to time called, Beer is NOT a food group: Motherly Meals on Meager Means by Lori Powell Gordon. I was gifted this book when I was in college from a women who I will always hold near and dear to my heart.

The author of the book, Lori Gordon is a wonderful cook and she is funny and smart too, which is a great bonus when you read her work. She is also a MN native, so it always feels MN nice to shop local. She has another cookbook out that I have not personally tried, called, If my house were on fire, these are the recipes I'd take. Once I get through all of the other gems I have in my kitchen it is a book I would consider purchasing.

Common Substituions (as they appear in Beer is NOT a food group)

1 cup butter in baked goods = 7/8 canola or other vegetable oil

1 cup buttermilk = 1/2 cup yogurt and 1/2 cup milk or 1 TBSP vinegar and enough milk to make a cup.

1 cup brown sugar = 1 cup white or raw sugar plus 1 tsp. molasses

1 oz. unsweetened chocolate = 3 TBSP. cocoa powder plus 1 TBSP butter

1 clove garlic = 1/8 tsp garlic powder

1 TBSP raw ginger = 1/2 tsp. powdered ginger

1 TBSP chopped fresh herbs = 1/2 tsp. dried

1 cup honey = 1-1/4 cup sugar plus 1/4 cup liquid

juice of one lemon = 2-3 TBSP lemon juice

1 TBSP prepared mustard = 1 tsp. dried mustard

1 package dry yeast = 1 TBSP = 1 cake compressed yeast

1 TBSP = 3 tsp

2 TBSP = 1 fluid oz

8 fluid oz. = 1 cup

2 cups = pint

2 pints = quart

4 quarts = 1 gallon

* If you bake with honey lower the oven temp by 25 degrees.
* If you don't have the right size pan for baking use the closest one you can find. Don't fill a pan too full if the contents are going to rise, like cake or bread. Two-thirds full is safe. If your pan is smaller than the one in the recipe, it will have to bake longer because the batter will be deeper. Check baked goods by their color, if they spring back when touched, or if a toothpick poked into them comes out clean, as a recipe will suggest. This is almost the best way to tell if its done.

Also one to note that is not mentioned by Lori that I've recently done: 1 TBSP cornstarch = 2 TSBP flour

If you have any good substitutions you'd like to add to this list, please feel free to comment :)

NYE Appetizer: Rosemary Flatbread with Herbed Goat Cheese

Jay and me at the Chef's Gallery, December 29, 2009



Anne and me at the Chef's Gallery, December 29, 2009


For Christmas Jay's sister gifted us a cooking class at The Chef's Gallery. We went to the special New Years Eve Appetizer Party one and enjoyed ourselves very much. Today I am planning to make a rosemary flatbread and goat cheese spread for a party tonight (from the class). I'd like to share this recipe with all people who might be interested in giving it a shot, if not tonight, another fine evening :)

Rosemary Flatbread

18 oz. (3 cups) Semolina flour
13-1/2 ounces (3 cups) flour)
2 tsp. kosher salt
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary
1-2/3 cups water
1/2 cup olive oil
All-purpose flour for kneading. Parchment paper for kneading. Extra virgin olive oil for brushing baked flatbread. Course sea salt or kosher salt for sprinkling baked flatbread

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, then whisk in the rosemary. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and then add the water and oil. Pull the dry ingredients into the oil and water until the mixture forms a mass. Mix by hand to form a smooth dough. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface. Knead about 2 minutes, being careful not to over mix. Wrap in plastic and let rest at least 1 hour. Place a baking stone in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Divide the dough into egg-sized portions, weighing about 2 ounces each. Very lightly flour a work surface and roll each dough portion out as thin as possible. Using a very large spatula or pizza wheel, transfer the rolled dough directly from the cutting board to the preheated baking stone. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until crisp, light, and golden. Remove from oven and brush with olice oil and sprinkle with salt.

Herbed Goat Cheese

6 ounces goat cheese at room temperature
3 ounces cream cheese at room temp
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 TBSP finely chopped soft-leaved herbs such as Parsley, Italitan Parsley, or Basil
2 scallions thinly sliced for garnish

1. Place cheeses and the cream in a glass mixing bowl. With a hand-held blender, blend the cheese and the cream just until light and smooth. Do not over mix.

2. With a rubber spatula, fold in the chopped soft-leaved herbs and spoon mixture into pastry bag fitted with the Ateco tip.

3. Pipe about 1 TBSP of the cheese mixture directly on the crisps, or pipe the cheese onto individual plates and place 1 or 2 crisps into the cheese vertically. Garnish with sliced scallions. Note: the cheese spread is great with vegetable crudites or any type of cracker or bread.



The finished product!

ENJOY!