My Favorite Baking Substitutions

Have you ever starting making a recipe, only to discover that, after already mixing together the dry ingredients, you're missing a crucial ingredient like vegetable oil or buttermilk? That's happened to me more times than I care to admit.

But I finally wised up and learned what I can substitute for oil or buttermilk in a recipe, and that's prevented me from having to throw away a half-made recipe since. What's especially interesting is that although I started using these substitutions out of necessity, I now use them because I prefer to, simply because I think they taste better in the recipe. The kids even request that I use applesauce instead of oil in their morning muffins!

So here's the simple, easy-to-remember substitutions…

Vegetable Oil

Replace vegetable oil in a recipe with an equivalent amount of applesauce. You may use sweetened or unsweetened depending on your sweetness preference.

Buttermilk

Replace buttermilk in a recipe with an equivalent amount of a vinegar-milk combination. To make the vinegar-milk mixture, add a measured amount (see the list below) of white vinegar to a measuring cup, and then add milk, filling the rest of the measuring cup up to the desired level.

If the recipe calls for:

• one cup buttermilk, use 1 tablespoon vinegar and fill to the 1 cup mark with milk.
• 1/2 cup buttermilk, use 1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar and fill to the 1/2 cup mark with milk.
• 1/4 or 1/3 cup buttermilk, use 1 teaspoon vinegar and fill to the 1/4 or 1/3 cup mark with milk.

For more kitchen tips, visit Tammy's Recipes.