If you ever want to substitute eggs in a baking recipe, use 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons warm water, per egg. Whip using in a blender, immersion blender or food processor until it reaches a creamy, egg yolk consistency. Great when baking for vegan friends or if you find yourself out of eggs.
If a recipe calls for cake flour, don’t run to the store just yet. You can make your own by combining 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour with 2 tablespoons corn, tapioca, or potato starch. Recipe yields one cup.
While using Laura’s citrus cutting tip from last week and hurriedly throwing together a dinner, I fell onto this. Instead of using a clunky citrus juicer, cut your citrus Laura’s way, and squeeze over a slotted spoon to catch any seeds. Hands work too but mine seem to absorb half the juice.
If you don’t have a fancy handheld citrus juicer, try cutting the citrus lengthwise (in a straight line between the little nubby ends of the lemon) to yield more juice when squeezing by hand. I swear it’s more effective than the common crosswise cutting method. And bonus! Not as many seeds seem to work their way out.
Bread made from entirely whole wheat flour can be somewhat low-rising. It seems that this is what people expect when they use all whole wheat. BUT it doesn’t have to be this way. The secret of getting the dough to rise higher is to use a teaspoon each of vital wheat gluten and powdered soy lecithin per loaf. Together these things act as a dough enhancer, and the bread rises beautifully.
My vice is sweet cherry tomatoes, that I buy in bulk, and pop into my mouth like pieces of ruby red candy. I keep them in a bowl on the counter for quick accessibility and as an easy option if I’m at all tempted by sugar and salty bits that hide in my pantry. But sometimes I don’t get to my red little lovers in time. They start to shrivel and lose their peak flavor. So that’s when I give them a light bath in olive oil, a hit of salt and pepper, toss into the toaster oven and roast to a slightly browned, sweetened version of their former selves to add to salads and pastas. If they even make it that far, because they’re still a darn good snack!
Switch to aluminum-free baking powder to avoid the unwanted bitter taste in your baked goods that aluminum tends to gives off. It’s especially noticeable when making biscuits or scones that usually call for a good amount of baking powder.
