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Emergency Cooking Hacks When You Are Missing an Ingredient

Paula — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 11:28:41 +0000

Cooking hacks can save your baking fail or pending disaster when you are missing a crucial ingredient. Every single chef out there knows the pain of going to make your dinner masterpiece or bake sale work of art just to find an ingredient missing. Oh maybe it’s the eggs or the sour cream. Perhaps it’s the baking soda or baking powder! If you don’t know what to substitute then the recipe is dead in the water. BUT, hey don’t fret. There are many easy cooking hacks and simple baking substitutions you can use to pull it off even without all the proper ingredients. This list of emergency cooking substitutions should help to get you through just about any cooking crisis. EMERGENCY Cooking Hacks – What Do I Do When I Run Out of Eggs? There are a couple of ingredients you simply can’t get away without. So stop right now if you started and then realized someone ate all the eggs. There’s pretty much no way out of that one. Need Eggs? If you are right in the middle of your cooking and you suddenly discover you are out of eggs; the best thing to do would be to cover, and then run next door to the neighbour or the corner market. Depending on the creation you might be able to get away without eggs, but it’s not advisable. Cookies, cakes and breads need eggs to hold everything together. It’s what gives the recipe body. So eggs are really one thing you have to have handy at all times – or go rely on that neighbour. But did you know that there is a quick cooking hack for egg whites versus egg yolks? Already used your egg yolks, but want to use your egg whites to substitute as if it were a whole egg. Use two egg whites for one large egg. Or, if you have two egg yolks, just add a tablespoon of water and it will make a suitable substitute for a large egg. Got it? Baking Powder This is the one that I often run out of. Baking powder is an absolute necessity in good homemade biscuits and so many other things. However, if you’ve found that you’ve run out, or don’t have quite enough, you can substitute ½ teaspoon of Cream of Tartar plus ¼ teaspoon of Baking Soda for each teaspoon of Baking Powder needed. There are other substitutions that can be made but this works the best. Cocoa verses Unsweetened Chocolate You will find that usually a recipe that requires either cocoa or unsweetened chocolate many times depends on the cook who created the recipe. If the recipe calls for 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate and all you have is cocoa, it’s an easy fix. For 1 ounce of chocolate substitute 3 tablespoons of cocoa and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, or melted shortening or butter. You can do the same thing in reverse. Need a Thickening Agent? Most white sauces, gravies and cream pies use flour as a thickening agent, where fruit pies and any dish where it is important to show the integrity and beauty of the fruit, then cornstarch or tapioca is used. In a pinch any of these will work. For every 2 tablespoons of flour, try 1 tablespoon of cornstarch or 4 teaspoons of quick – cooking tapioca. Simple cooking hacks, right? Sour Cream verses Yogurt If the recipe calls for sour cream and all you have on hand is plain yogurt, or visa – versa, you can substitute one for the other, using equal amounts, with good results. The sour cream might be a bit more tangy, but it’s hardly noticeable in the finished product. And in many bakes good sour cream often makes the recipe taste even more moist. Tomato Paste and Tomato Sauce ¾ cup of tomato paste plus 1 cup of water will work for 2 cups of tomato sauce. Substituting for tomato paste is a bit more work, but with good results. For ½ cup of tomato paste, take 1 cup of tomato sauce and simmer, uncovered on low until reduced by half. Apple Pie Spice/Pumpkin Pie Spice Did you know that Apple Pie Spice and Pumpkin Pie Spice can be substituted for each other as they are so close, but if you don’t have either then you must mix: Apple Pie Spice/Pumpkin Pie Spice ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon of allspice and 1/8 teaspoon of cardamom. Apple Pie Spice can be produced using ½ teaspoon of cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg and 1/8 teaspoon of Cardamom. Pumpkin Pie Spice is produced with ½ teaspoon cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon cloves, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. So they are pretty similar indeed. Emergency Cooking Hacks to Avoid Kitchen Fails There are many other emergency substitutions that can be made for different dishes, but these are the most common ones. What’s the one thing you run out of often? Here’s one of my best pinned recipes for you to make and pin for later. Best Butter Tarts on the Planet. Happy Cooking!

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25 Easy Breakfast Skillets, Bakes and Casseroles

Paula — Wed, 21 Dec 2016 14:03:06 +0000

Is breakfast your least inspired meal of the day? I feel your pain. Even when well rested I rarely feel like I have the time and creativity to build something scrumptious for breakfast. These 25 Easy Breakfast Skillets, Bakes and Casseroles can help you with that. Most days of the week I am a grab the yogurt, and coffee, and go kind of girl. Seems like there’s never enough time to gather ingredients and bake in the morning. These easy breakfast skillets, casseroles and bakes can be prepared or made ahead and shared on a special occasion. These are two of the dishes I am thinking about serving this Holiday Season – Farmer’s Breakfast Skillet Recipe from The Country Chic Cottage and the Hash Brown Casserole with Eggs, Sausage and Mushrooms from The Wicked Noodle. I love hash browns. 25 Easy Breakfast Skillets, Casseroles and Bakes Main Dishes Spinach Egg Bake from Bunny’s Warm Oven Skillet Hash Brown Breakfast from Bunny’s Warm Oven Farmer’s Breakfast Skillet Recipe from The Country Chic Cottage Hash Brown Casserole with Eggs, Sausage and Mushrooms from The Wicked Noodle Breakfast Pot Pie from Cooking Mimi Skillet Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Grits Breakfast Bake from Peas & Crayons Simple Country Breakfast Casserole Recipe from A Magical Mess Farmers’ Market Overnight Breakfast Egg Casserole from Two Healthy Kitchens Ham, Egg, and Cheese Breakfast Casserole from Happy Brown House Steak & Egg Breakfast Skillet with Sauteed Radishes & Carrots from Caroline’s Cooking Quick Mexican Breakfast Scramble from Vegetarian Gourmet Easy Sweet Potato Breakfast from Parenting Chaos Sweet Breakfast Bakes Caramel Apple Biscuit Bake from Table for Seven Baked Cinnamon Swirl French Toast from Table for Seven Breakfast Skillets – Sides and Appetizers Cheater Breakfast Potatoes from Vegetarian Gourmet Brown Sugar Bacon Wrapped Sausage Appetizers from The Country Chic Cottage Brown Butter Pumpkin Grits from Peas & Crayons [tweetthis]You can’t afford to miss this easy roundup of breakfast skillets and casseroles. [/tweetthis] HEARTY Casseroles Cheesy Ham and Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole from Living a Sunshine Life Sausage, Egg and Biscuit Breakfast Casserole from Mess for Less Easy Chorizo Breakfast Casserole from Clarks Condensed Simple Breakfast Casserole (THM-S) from Artful Homemaking Weekend Breakfast Casserole Recipe from The Jenny Evolution Breakfast Casserole with Sausage and Spinach from Rachel Cooks Grits Breakfast Casserole with Sausage, Egg and Cheese from The Thrifty Couple Ham and Vegetable Breakfast Casserole from Chocolate Slopes There’s no need to have a dull breakfast when you have tis many great easy breakfast skillets to choose from. What’s your favourite breakfast recipe?

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Easter Egg Decorating Ideas

Paula — Thu, 26 Mar 2015 04:37:36 +0000

There’s something fun about decorating Easter eggs every year. The process makes me feel like a kid again. These Creative and Fun Easter Egg Decorating Ideas are so cute and clever! I wish I had thought of them first! Easter Egg Decorating Ideas I love the part of Easter where kids and parents alike decorate Easter eggs. It’s always been fun to me. I don’t care what the colours are, or, how fancy the eggs turn out, it’s simply fun. My Mom used to decorate eggs with us every year so the process reminds me of her and it also makes me nostalgic for the old days when I was a kid in the family kitchen dying eggs with my Mom and my brother. Back then, when I was a child, safe inside a tiny kitchen in our Guelph home, the egg dying process was pretty simple. We sometimes had a PAAS kit and we dyed them carefully with the kit’s contents. They always turned out beautifully. Now there are many different ways and techniques to dye the eggs. There are a lot I never would have considered – for instance Rubber Band Easter Eggs are super creative. This year I plan to do some enjoyable egg decorating here because it’s become our tradition. Happy Easter! Have you tried any of these techniques? While you are at it, maybe consider making this adorable and very simple DIY Easter Bunnies banner too. [tweetthis]Which of these fun and super creative Easter egg decorating ideas will you choose this year? [/tweetthis] Fun and Creative Easter Egg Decorating Ideas Tissue Paper Easter Eggs via Thrifty DIY Diva Rubber Band Easter Eggs via Simply Stacie Foil Covered Easter Eggs via Suzy’s Artsy Craftsy Sitcom Tie Dye Easter Eggs via Amanda’s Cookin’ Silk Tie Easter Eggs via Family Food & Travel Dinosaur Easter Eggs via The Joys of Boys Drip Art Easter Eggs via Red Ted Art Speckled Easter Eggs via Mom Foodie Easy Monogrammed Easter Eggs via Divine Lifestyle Vibrant Colors Easter Eggs via All Things Mamma Easter Egg Decorating is Fun for The Whole Family! There are so many fun ways to decorate Easter Eggs. What is your favourite? Do you have a creative Easter egg decorating idea to share?

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How Does Your Easter Egg Hunt Grow? #Kindermom

Paula — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 11:00:00 +0000

There is something about Spring time and Easter that brings to mind fresh starts. The windows have finally been thrown open here after a long winter and we are enjoying being able to take walks, riding the bikes, and being able to explore our new yard. This year we will be starting new Easter traditions in our new home. There’s something exciting about that also. One tradition I look forward to every year is the Easter Egg Hunt. It’s a hold over from my own childhood and it brings out the child in everyone. Treats and Toys that are Safe to Share Kinder Surprise has been a big part of our last few Easters. I have been a Kinder Mom for about three years now. I love Kinder Canada for a few reasons. First of all I can share them with my nieces and nephews and not worry about their peanut allergies. (everything but the mini eggs). My kids can take them to school and share them as well. No worries about other children getting sick, or having allergic reactions. I also love that Kinder is all about encouraging play. This month has been insanely busy here at work and the other day I cracked an egg open to find a toy car inside, which led to me playing for five minutes with a car in the middle of my work day. That reminded me how important play is to everyone, at every age. Every year Kinder comes out with an Egg Hunt Kit. I love that. Madly. In fact, Easter Egg hunts are traditions carried over from my childhood. Back when I was a kid, we found jelly beans my Easter Bunny (Mom) hid. She maintained this tradition for many years longer than she probably needed to. I know she did it even when my brother was in university. Our Easter Egg Hunt Tradition For the past 4-5 years, some friends and I, have done an Easter egg hunt with our adoption group. It’s part of the social component of our group, meaning every year we take some time to get our families together – not just Moms or Dads, but the kids too. That’s important. In years gone by we had Easter egg hunts at someone’s home. We had a field that someone donated for the afternoon event and that was a great time for everyone. Who doesn’t love an egg hunt? One year we invited everyone to our backyard and that was a lot of fun too. But this year we moved. We now have a yard with a swimming pool waiting to be opened and that’s not so conducive to an outdoor event right now. Also the kids are getting older, so we are all still trying to determine how the social event and the egg hunt will grow with us. Our kids are not so small anymore. Many are tweens, like mine, who might rather be helping the little ones gather their eggs than hunting for them on their own. I have a few ideas though. I can still do the Easter egg hunt for my own girls. I think I might just revamp it to give it new energy this year. On Ainsley’s birthday we tried a scavenger hunt through the house to find her birthday present (Katy Perry concert tickets) and that caught on like a barn on fire. She loved it. So, maybe this year I hide fewer eggs, but I make them all contingent on finding a clue and putting the pieces of a scavenger hunt together. And this year I think my adoption group might host a low key social affair. We can still celebrate with Kinder Surprises after we have an afternoon at the park, or the museum. No matter how the event evolves Kinder Canada is always there to share the day with us. For more details and to enter the regular deals and contests Kinder offers, visit the Kinder Canada Facebook page. As a parent, I appreciate also that some kids can’t be home for Easter. Kinder has partnered with Children’s Miracle Network and will be providing 12 baskets to CMN hospitals. As well, Kinder® will be donating another $25,000 to help support this non-profit organization dedicated to saving and improving the lives of children by raising funds for children’s hospitals across North America. Check out these 20 Easter Cookies and Easter Lunchbox Jokes. Disclosure: I’m part of the Kinder® Mom program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

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