The Culinary Sleuth: Adapting and Altering Recipes

The Creative Cook
Adapting and Altering Recipes

by Lynn Kerrigan

Someone recently e-mailed me requesting a recipe for a jalapeño marinade. She'd been to a restaurant and enjoyed the pork chops created with this particular recipe and wanted to duplicate it at home. Using the handful of recipe search sites on the Internet I found a reasonable facsimile and sent it off to her.

For some reason, this exercise made me wonder just how many recipes there are in the world. The Internet alone must have archives of thousands if not millions. In addition, there are millions more in cookbooks, newspaper food column and food association promotional brochures. This in turn made me wonder just how many of these recipes are unique and that's what led me to write this article.

It's said there are no new recipes anymore. New cookbooks contain a reworking of previously published recipes from cookbooks that contain adapted recipes from previously published recipes and so it goes. A subtle change here or there, a pinch of this instead of a half teaspoon of that and eureka, you've developed a new recipe. Recipes themselves are copyright free meaning you may copy the list of ingredients in any media you want. It's the recipe name and instructions that are subject to copyright law so be sure if you filch a recipe to use as your own, you make significant changes in these areas. Also, if you adapt a recipe, it's professional (and common) courtesy to site the original source or creator.

If new cookbooks contain hashed over versions of old recipes, why are they so popular?

I call this phenomenon, recipe mania. It may even border on obsessive-compulsive behavior. Recipe or cookbook collecting is the American homemaker's number one hobby according to Avis Hulvey, editor of Cook's Notebook. I believe it. Scan any pen pal publication like Woman's Circle and you'll find recipe or cookbook collecting listed as a hobby in the majority of listings. There appears to be some weird force that compels normally sensible people to feel they "must have" every published recipe in their kitchen or they'll expose themselves to culinary illiteracy. The irony is that even if we live significantly longer than average, we'd never have time to make all the recipes.

So getting back to that jalapeño marinade, what would I have done? I probably have the recipe right under my nose in my own obsessive-compulsive collection of cookbooks and recipe literature. Finding a basic marinade recipe and adding a couple of chopped jalapeño's sounds reasonable to me.

The first point to remember when altering recipes is that all changes are experiments. What results may be a culinary masterpiece or an inedible disaster. Therein lies the fun in adapting or altering recipes not to mention satisfying creative impulses. You become a culinary pioneer or mock food scientist in your quest to develop something new.

Remaking Recipes

ingredients

The healthy eating trend has people scrambling to remake their favorite recipes into more healthy and still delicious versions. Culinary magazines feature Recipe Makeovers each issue to meet this need. It's easy to do it yourself and is only a matter of knowing what can be changed.

Food scientists discovered most people don't notice a significant difference or accept the difference resulting from the following kinds of changes.

1. Reduce sugar by one-third. Example: If a recipe says 1 cup, use 2/3 cup.
This works best in canned and frozen fruits and in making puddings and custards. In cookies and cakes try using 1/2 cup sugar per cup of flour. For quick breads and muffins, use 1 tablespoon sugar per cup of flour. To enhance the flavor when reducing sugar, add vanilla, cinnamon, or nutmeg.
2. Reduce fat by one-third. Example: If a recipe calls for 1/2 cup use 1/3 cup.
This works best in gravies, sauces, puddings, and some cookies. For cakes and quick breads, use 2 tablespoons fat per cup of flour.
3. Omit salt or reduce by one-half. Example: If a recipe says 1/2 teaspoon, use 1/4 teaspoon.
This may be more acceptable if you gradually reduce the amount each time you make the recipe. Herbs, spices, or salt-free seasoning mixes can enhance flavor. Do not eliminate salt from yeast bread or rolls. It is essential for flavor and proper texture.
4. Substitute whole grain and bran flours.
Whole wheat flour can replace from one-fourth to one-half of all-purpose flour. Example: If a recipe has 3 cups all-purpose flour, use 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour.
Oat bran or oatmeal (ground to flour consistency in a food processor or blender) can replace up to one-fourth of all-purpose flour. Example: If a recipe has 3 cups all-purpose flour, use 3/4 cup oat bran or ground oatmeal and 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour.
Bran cereal flour is made by grinding a ready-to-eat cereal such as Bran Buds or 100% Bran in a blender or food processor for 60 to 90 seconds. It can replace up to one-fourth of the all-purpose flour. Example: If a recipe calls for 2 cups all-purpose flour, use 1/2 cup bran flour and 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour.

Reduce The Fat

oil

All fats and oils are high in calories and provide lots of flavor but you can make a healthier choice by choosing those with less saturated fat. Likewise, when you use lower fat milk products, you reduce fat, calories, and cholesterol.

Canola, safflower, sunflower, corn, peanut, olive and soybean oil, contain the lowest amount of saturated fat (6%-15%). Coconut oil, butter, palm oil, animal fat and lard contain the most (41-54%).

Use reduced fat sour cream, low fat or nonfat yogurt, or cottage cheese instead of regular sour cream in sauces and dips. Skim milk can replace whole milk in most recipes. Evaporated milk can substitute for whipping cream, and evaporated skim milk can replace regular evaporated milk in some recipes.

Other (Healthy) Ingredient Substitutions

Instead of butter try a 60/40 butter blend or reduced calorie margarine.
Instead of sour cream try light or mock sour cream (recipe follows)
Instead of 2 whole eggs try 1 whole egg plus 4 egg whites
Instead of 2 egg whites try homemade egg substitute (recipe follows)
Instead of whole milk try 2% or skim milk
Instead of cream try evaporated or evaporated skim milk
Instead of cream cheese try light cream cheese or Neufchatel
Instead of whipped cream try homemade non-fat whipped topping (recipe follows)
Instead of cottage cheese try non-fat ricotta cheese
Instead of 1 ounce baking chocolate try 3 tablespoons powdered cocoa plus 1 tablespoon cooking oil
Instead of mayonnaise try half light mayonnaise and half non-fat yogurt

Remake Recipes By Increasing Fiber Intake

Top casseroles with crushed bran cereal* instead of Chinese noodles, canned onion rings or croutons.
Use crushed bran cereal instead of bread crumbs for coating chicken and fish.
Use a mixture of half chocolate chips and half raisins for chocolate chips in cookie and bar cookie recipes.
Substitute brown rice for white in soups and casseroles.
Try barley or wheat kernels instead of white rice in stir fry and side dishes.

* Try All Bran, Bran Buds, 100% Bran, Fiber One. Raw bran is less expensive but some people object to the texture and note a metallic flavor.

Remake Sauces and Gravies

Fat separates the flour or starch granules in sauces and gravies preventing lumpiness. Fat also enhances flavor. To make no-fat, smooth sauces and gravies, blend starch or flour with cold liquid. Add herbs or bouillon granules to heighten flavor.

Did You Know?

When using a regular, not light or microwave, brownie or cake mix you can substitute 1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt for the 2 eggs and 1/2 cup oil.

Mock Sour Cream

baker

1 cup low-fat cottage cheese*
2 tablespoons skim milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Combine all ingredients using blender or food processor. Yield: about 1 cup

Has 14 calories and 0 fat grams per tablespoon as opposed to 26 calories and 2.5 fat grams in a tablespoon of regular sour cream.

No-Fat Whipped Topping

1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
2 tablespoons boiling water
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder
1/3 cup ice water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. In a thoroughly chilled small bowl, beat milk and ice water. Beat in lemon juice. Add sugar and vanilla and beat to soft peaks. Add gelatin mixture and beat. Yield: about 1 1/2 cups. Calories: 12 per tablespoon

Homemade Egg Substitute

Because this recipe contains raw eggs, do not use it in uncooked products such as eggnog and ice cream.

1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
6 egg whites
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Combine all ingredients using a blender or electric mixer until smooth. Store in covered container in refrigerator for up to 2 days. Or freeze in 1/4 cup portions. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.

Yield: 1 cup; 1/4 cup is equivalent to 1 egg

Information and recipes in this article are adapted from the county extension publication, "Altering Recipes" by food science specialist, Patricia Redinger and communication specialist, Diane Nelson. Available for $2.50 from University of Illinois, Office of Agricultural Communications and Education, 67 Mumford Hall, 1301 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801.

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