In a Pinch

One of the most aggravating situations is finding you're out of a certain ingredient when you're already committed to the recipe. Sometimes, though, you've got a satisfactory substitution at hand. It just takes a little know-how. Today's blog will help you get that know-how.

Out of baking powder? Make your own with 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar plus 1/4 teaspoon baking soda.

Out of sour cream? Put 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a measuring cup and add evaporated milk to the one-cup line.

In the happy situation you're out of dried herbs and are blessed with an abundance of fresh, the general rule is one tablespoon of fresh chopped herbs is equivalent to a teaspoon of dried.

On the other hand, if you're out of fresh onion, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder is equivalent to 1 teaspoon of fresh, minced onion.

One teaspoon of garlic salt or 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder is equivalent to 1 clove of fresh garlic.

And finally, if you're making brownies or cookies and don't have unsweetened chocolate, you can substitute 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder with 1 tablespoon butter or margarine added to it.

Hope that helps you out. You may find you even prefer some of these substitutes to the original ingredients. After all, cooking is an art, as well as a science!