Recipe 911
Emergency Substitutions
Recipes contain non-essential and
essential ingredients.
Non-essential ingredients are those that
can be changed without changing the general
appearance or texture, i.e.
M&M’s in place of peanuts in cookies
Black beans in place of pinto beans in chili
Essential ingredients are those that have a
specific function in a recipe.
Ingredients are mostly found in baked
goods
Work like a chemical formula
Include flour, salt, sugar, fat, & leavening
agents.
If changes are made to these, it will affect
appearance, taste, or texture.
So, what happens if you forgot (shame,
shame) to check your pantry to make sure
you had needed ingredients before you
started to cook and you are in the middle
of the process and discover you don’t
have something you need.
What would you do?
Changing Ingredients
• Recipe ingredients are often changed for reasons
other than increasing or decreasing the yield.
Reasons for changing ingredients are to:
– Adjust for high-altitude cooking
– Adjust for microwave cooking
– Substitute ingredients
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Adjusting Recipes
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Changing Ingredients, contd.
• Adjusting for high-altitude cooking:
– As altitude increases, air pressure decreases and
liquids will boil at a temperature below 212 ˚F.
• When liquid boils below 212 ˚F., foods
simmering in the liquid take longer to cook.
They require more liquid (to replace that which
evaporates) and longer cooking times.
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Adjusting for high-altitude cooking:
– In baked goods, gas bubbles formed by the boiling
liquid rise more quickly and cause the batter to rise
before it “sets.” Without making adjustments to
ingredients, the centers would collapse.
• To prevent the centers of baked goods from
collapsing, use less baking powder and sugar,
and increase the oven temperature.
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Changing Ingredients, contd.
Adjusting for microwave cooking:
• Decrease the liquid by 1/3 the total amount
• Eliminate fats (both solid and liquid) unless they are used for
flavoring
• Use ½ of the seasonings
• Use HIGH power level unless food is “delicate,” then use
MEDIUM-HIGH power level
• Decrease cooking time – look for a similar recipe in a
cookbook designed for the microwave
• Allow for standing time.
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You really want to make a cake that calls for
buttermilk, have everything you need for
the recipe but the buttermilk, but you are
broke!
What would you do?
Changing Ingredients, contd.
Adjusting for substitute ingredients:
– Ingredients in recipes are often substituted.
Some reasons for changing recipe ingredients
include:
• Unavailable ingredients
• Cost of ingredients
• Decreasing/increasing nutritional value
• Creativity
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Changing Ingredients, contd.
SUBSTITUTION
INGREDIENT
1 c. cake flour
1 c. – 2 Tbsp. (7/8 c.) all-purpose flour
1 c. self-rising flour
1 c. all-purpose flour + 1 tsp. baking powder + ½ tsp. salt
1 c. buttermilk
1 Tbsp. lemon juice or vinegar + enough milk to equal 1 c.
(Stir and allow mixture to stand several minutes before using.)
1 large egg
2 egg whites
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 c. corn syrup
1 ¼ c. sugar + ¼ c. liquid used in recipe
1 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa + 1 Tbsp. butter, margarine, or vegetable oil
1 2/3 oz. semisweet chocolate
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate + 4 tsp. sugar OR 1 oz. semisweet chocolate
chips + 1 tsp. shortening
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 clove garlic
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh herb
1 tsp. chopped dried herb
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You have learned how to make omelets in
your Foods class, want to make one for
your grandmother, but she has high
cholesterol and you know that egg yolks
are high in cholesterol.
What can you do?
You find a recipe that looks really interesting
but it calls for peanuts. You are allergic to
peanuts.
What can you do?
It is often necessary to make substitutions
when cooking. Reasons include
Unavailable ingredients
Cost of ingredients
Nutritional value
Creativity
There are some ingredients that can be
substituted without any significant change
to the product.
Write the title, “Emergency Substitutions” in
your notebook. Divide the page into two
columns.
Emergency Substitutions
• 1 c. sour cream
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 1 Large egg
• 1 c. corn syrup
1 c. plain yogurt
1 T vinegar or lemon
juice plus enough milk
to = 1 cup
2 egg whites
1 ¼ c. sugar + ¼ c. liquid
used in recipe
Emergency Substitutions (cont.)
• 1 oz baking chocolate
• 1 2/3rd oz semi-sweet
chocolate
• 1 c. cake flour
• 1 c. self-rising flour
3 T cocoa + 1 T butter
1 oz baking chocolate
+ 4 t sugar OR 1
oz semisweet
chocolate chips
7/8 c. all-purpose
flour (3/4 c. + 2 T)
1 c. all-purpose flour +
1t. baking powder
& ½ t. salt
Emergency Substitutions (cont.)
• 1 T cornstarch
2 T all-purpose flour
• 1 t. dry mustard
1 T prepared mustard
• 1 clove garlic
1/8th t garlic powder
• 1 T chopped fresh herbs
1 t chopped dried herbs
Now You Do It!