Often times I get to cooking and find that I have run out of an ingredient. Well, rather than scratch the whole project, I will refer to my Cooking Ingredient Substitution List and have found that it is next to impossible to tell that something was changed. Take a look at what I find works:
| Ingredient | Substitution |
| 1 teaspoon baking powder | ¼ teaspoon baking soda plus ½ cup buttermilk or ¼ teaspoon baking soda plus 5/8 teaspoon cream of tartar |
| 1 cup sifted cake flour | 7/8 cup sifted all-purpose flour or 1 cup all-purpose flour minus 1-2 tablespoons |
| 1 cup self-rising flour | 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour plus 1½ teaspoons baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt |
| 1 cup all-purpose flour | 1 cup whole wheat flour |
| 1 cup honey | 1 to 1¼ cups sugar plus ¼ cup liquid |
| 2 large eggs | 3 small eggs |
| 1 medium egg | 2 egg yolks plus 1 tablespoon water (for baking) -or- 2 egg yolks (in custards or cream fillings) |
| 1 cup sweetened condensed milk | 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons dry milk powder plus ½ cup warm water plus ¾ cup sugar and dissolve |
| 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate | 1 square or 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon butter or margarine |
| 6 squares or 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted | 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted |
| 1 tablespoon cornstarch (as thickening) | 2 tablespoons flour or 2 teaspoons quick tapioca or 2 egg yolks |
| 1 teaspoon lemon juice | ½ teaspoon white vinegar |
| 1 tablespoon fresh herbs | ½ to 1 teaspoon dried herbs |
| 1 small garlic clove | 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder |
| 1 pound fresh mushrooms | 3 ounces dried or 6 ounces canned |
| 1 cup whipping cream, whipped | 2 cups thawed whipped topping |
| 1 cup whipping cream as liquid | 1/3 cup melted butter plus ¾ cup milk |
| 1 cup heavy cream as liquid | 1 cup evaporated milk |
| 1 cup light cream | 3 tablespoons melted butter plus ¾ cup milk |
| 1 cup ricotta cheese | 1 cup cottage cheese, liquid drained |
| 1 cup buttermilk | 1 cup plain yogurt, stirred, or 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or white vinegar) stirred into milk to make 1 cup; let stand 5 minutes to make soured milk for baking only (never use sour milk that’s been in the fridge too long; it’s actually spoiled) |
| 1 cup whole milk | 2 teaspoons melted butter plus 1 cup fat-free milk (or water) or equal parts evaporated milk and water or 1 cup nonfat dry milk plus 2 teaspoons melted butter |
| 1 cup sour cream | 3 tablespoons melted butter stirred into 7/8 cup buttermilk, soured milk or plain yogurt -or- 1 cup plain yogurt (but it will taste less rich from the missing fat) |
| 1 cup wine | 13 tablespoons water, 3 tablespoons lemon juice and 1 tablespoon sugar or a little less than 1 cup apple juice plus lemon juice |
| 1/2 cup dry red wine | 2 tablespoons sherry or port wine |
| 1 /4 cup rum | 1 teaspoon rum extract plus liquid to make ¼ cup |
| 1 teaspoon vanilla extract | 1 inch vanilla bean, split and simmered in liquid of recipe |
| 1 cup bread crumbs | ¾ cup cracker crumbs -or- 3 to 4 slices bread, torn and blenderized |
| Pecans | walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts |
| Chunky peanut butter | creamy peanut butter (or grind roasted peanuts in a blender with a little peanut oil) |
| 1 cup butter | 1 cup margarine or 7/8 cup vegetable oil or 7/8 cup butter-flavored shortening |
| 1 pound lard | 2 cups shortening |
| 1 cup sugar | 1 cup honey plus a pinch of baking soda -or- (in baking) 7/8cup honey plus a pinch of baking soda -or- (in main dishes) 3/4 cup honey |
| 1 cup brown sugar | 1 cup white sugar plus 2 tablespoons molasses |
| 1 cup molasses (in baking) | 1 cup sugar (replace baking soda in recipe with baking powder) |
| 3/4 cup real maple syrup | 3/4 cup maple flavored syrup, corn syrup or 1 cup sugar and increase liquid in recipe by 3 tablespoons |
| 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice | 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg plus 1/4 teaspoon ginger plus 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon |
| 1 pound tomatoes | 3 medium or 3/4 cup sauce (6 ounces) or 1/4 cup paste (2 ounces) |
| 8 ounces tomato juice | 2/3 cups water plus 1/3 cup tomato paste |
| 2 cups tomato juice | 2 1/2 cups water plus 6 ounces tomato paste plus 3/4 teaspoons salt and a dash of sugar |
| 1 large marshmallow | 10 mini marshmallows (dust off cornstarch) |
| 1 cup granulated sugar | 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar for uses other than baking |
| 1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger | 1 teaspoon chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons minced crystalized |
| 1 head fresh dill | 2 teaspoons dill seed |
| 1 tablespoon grated fresh horseradish | 2 tablespoons bottled horseradish |
| 1 teaspoon dry mustard | 1 tablespoon prepared mustard or 1/2 teaspoon mustard seed |
| 1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter | 1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar |
Image: Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
