Today's Magic Word is "Substitutions"

Here's the scenario: it's 8 pm and I find out I need to take cupcakes to tomorrow's daycare party. No problem, I have a box of cake mix and a can of frosting, eggs, and oil.........OH MY GOSH, I'M OUT OF OIL! What to do now? I'm sure as heck not driving to the grocery store at 8 pm, and I have no neighbors from which to borrow oil, but I have applesauce! 

See, if you know the purpose for a missing ingredient, it's usually quite simple to find a substitution. Oil, for example, is primarily used for moisture. Applesauce doesn't cook out, and you can't taste it once cooked. I usually use applesauce instead of oil for pancakes, waffles, cakes, etc. Honey is usually used to add a chewy constitency to a baked good. If you're lacking honey, try a 5:1 ratio of granulated sugar and water (1 cup honey=1 1/4 c sugar+1/4 c water). Baking powder is a leavening agent. When the Clabber Girl is gone, use 1/4 tsp baking soda plus 1/2 tsp cream of tartar (equals 1 tsp baking powder). One substitution that I use frequently is for cream. This is only to be used for cooking or baking a recipe calling for heavy cream, not for whipping cream. I use this most often for a cream sauce or scalloped potatoes. 1 c. heavy cream=3/4 c. whole milk+1/4 cup melted butter. There are many more substitutions that can be found online or in the reference section of a basic cookbook (like Better Homes and Gardens or McCalls Cooking School).

Some substitutions can be used as an added ingredient to sneak a little more nutrition into an empty-calorie food. Spinach, mushrooms, tofu and squash are easy to hide and take on the flavor of whatever it is they're cooked with. I always make my brownies with zucchini. Shhhhh....my picky husband and toddler don't know! Using a good grater or microplane, finely shred your squash and add it, along with a enough water to make the batter moist, in place of the oil. The brownies will bake up really high, thick, dense, moist and fudgy (ie. a little chewy). Once baked, you can't see, taste, or feel a difference at all. They'll keep for a week or so in a ziploc in the fridge. Same goes for pancakes with fruits or vegetables. It's really easy to mash up a banana very well, and sneak it into pancakes with a little applesauce and milk. Wilted and blended spinach can be added to pancakes also. The pancakes will turn green, but the kids might like the change. Just tell them you added a little "food coloring" to them. Spinach is a food, and it has color, so you're not really lying, right?!?

I hope some of you can find help in these suggestions. Later tonight, I'll post a Mexican BBQ recipe, made entirely on the grill. Really fast, cheap, easy and soooo yummy!