substitutions

I was at my vacation house when an intense craving for homemade waffles hit. Since it was snowing heavily, we had to make waffles with the ingredients in the kitchen. The recipe called for buttermilk, and rather than find another recipe, I decided to make the simple substitution for buttermilk that is a combination of milk and lemon juice.

Here's the easy recipe:

1. Place a tablespoon of lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup.
2. Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line.
3. Let stand for five minutes. Then, use as much as your recipe calls for.

I needed two cups of buttermilk, so I started with two tablespoons of fresh lemon juice and then filled it up with milk. The waffles turned out perfectly and were insanely comforting.

Have you ever used this substitution for buttermilk?

Last week I tried to make cinnamon rolls and the recipe called for 1 1/2 cups of buttermilk, unfortunately I only had 1 cup in my house. Since I was in my pajamas and the weather wasn't exactly hospitable, I decided that there was no way I was going out to the store. However, I was already halfway through the recipe (I really thought I had everything before I started) and needed a solution quick!

So I poured through a bunch of food science and cooking tip books and was able to find a few good substitutions that ended up saving the day.

1 cup of buttermilk can be substituted with:

1 tbsp vinegar (or lemon juice) plus milk to equal 1 cup. Stir and let stand for 5 minutes.

or

1 3/4 tsp cream of tartar plus 1 cup of milk

I also learned that for baking you can use:
1/4 cup buttermilk powder plus 1 cup of water.
Remember to mix the powder with dry ingredients and water with wet.
I personally haven't tried buttermilk powder, but think it could be handy to keep on hand - once opened it will keep in the fridge for a year.

Many holiday inspired baked goods, including this Pumpkin Pie Cake call for pumpkin-pie spice, but what does that mean?

Pumpkin-pie spice is a spice that is sold in many grocery stores. You'll find it in the spice aisle between Paprika and Rosemary. However, instead of rushing out and buying a specialized spice blend, why not make your own? It's a simple spice blend that is generally made from cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice - and the best part is that you can customize it to suit your tastes!

Here's my favorite blend, although sometimes I add a pinch of clove.

• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 ground nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp allspice

There was an interesting discussion over at the Kitchen Goddess group regarding the substitution of applesauce for oil. Lucky for us, FitSugar heard about it and gave us the lowdown.

Now you might be asking yourself, could this really taste good? The answer is yes. Take your best cookie recipe and give it a try. I'll be honest, it won't taste as fantastic as the original, but it'll be healthier and in my book that means I don't have to feel so guilty.

If your favorite recipe is too good to mess with, then look for one that calls for applesauce to begin with. For yummy Applesauce Cookies, read more