Milk Street Q&A

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Pat - You're making the right choices by substituting radish for a similar bite, although probably best in raw applications. Radish is a member of the Brassicaceae family, not an allium. To mimic texture, celery and bell pepper are options. According to FODMAP diet followers (which requires the elimination of alliums due to Irritable Bowel Syndrome), Asafoetida, also called Hing, would be something interesting to try. Asafoetida is a pungent spice used in cooking that is native to Central Asia, particularly Iran and India. Asafoetida comes from a very unusual source. According to food scientist Harold McGee, it’s made by scraping the sap from the exposed root of a plant in the carrot family. The sap is dried and crushed, giving us a tan-colored powder to sprinkle into our dishes. McGee also says that the sap contains many of the same sulfur compounds found in onions. It has a very strong odor when dry, which many sources say is reminiscent of washed rind cheeses or body odor. Not to worry – when the spice is added during cooking, it mellows out into a gentle flavor. Asafoetida is used in savory dishes, often to add a more full flavor by mimicking the taste of onions, garlic, egg, and even meat. It’s a staple ingredient in Indian cooking, commonly used along with turmeric in lentil dishes like dal, and a variety of vegetable dishes. Unless you have a really excellent health food store or Indian grocery near you, it’s probably best to look for asafoetida online. You can buy it here or here. I'm sure it's very frustrating since onions and garlic are in so many dishes. Maybe asafoetida can help! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

I think the main problem with canned fruit is that it's usually packed in syrup or fruit juice which adds additional sugar and calories. You could use it to make smoothies or popsicles, a fruit cocktail cake - this is a well-known cake in the Southern U.S., add to muffins, puree and add to cocktails. Hope that helps! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Sherry - Spearmint is the standard when we call for mint in recipes. It is the type of mint most often sold in grocery stores and, therefore, the most widely available. Also, spearmint is milder in flavor – it contains significantly less menthol than peppermint – and lends itself to more preparations. However, peppermint can be used in place of spearmint in sweet dishes where it’s stronger flavor is more balanced by sugar. Here is a breakdown of the differences: Peppermint: A natural hybrid of spearmint and water mint. Because peppermint is a mix of two types of mint, it contains a higher content of menthol (40 percent as opposed to spearmint’s 0.5 percent). Menthol is the chemical ingredient that creates that recognizable cooling effect on the mouth. Its strong flavor is best suited for sweet dishes, especially those with chocolate. Peppermint is used in extracts and oils. Spearmint: Compared to peppermint, spearmint has a delicate flavor and fragrance. It gets its flavor from the chemical ingredient carvone, which is much subtler than menthol and doesn’t evoke the same cooling sensation. In cooking, spearmint is used in savory recipes unlike peppermint. Whether it’s blended into a tzatziki sauce, drizzled over a rack of lamb, folded into a pork- and veggie-packed spring roll, or muddled into a refreshing mojito, spearmint will let the dish’s other flavors shine alongside it. Hope that helps! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Sharon - Flour weights per cup are all over the map. That's because they are determined by taking an average weight of a sample of people measuring flour by cup using the dip-and-sweep method \or\ spooning method - two very different methods which can produce wildly different results. Every person in the experiment is a variable - some people have a heavy hand, others packs more tightly, etc. - and each experiment may use different methods to achieve their results. Even the weather that day can affect them. We did our own experiment here at Milk Street and came to 130 grams per cup (about 4.5 ounce) in order to have consistency across our recipes. In my opinion, all baking recipes should be developed and written using weight measurements since the ingredient balance when baking is so critical. However, since not everyone does, I would probably go with 4 1/2 ounces per cup. I find the Cooks Illustrated number a bit of an outlier when you look at other baking experts' numbers. I can't be sure it will work for you across the board (obviously use the CI measurement for their recipes), but I think it's probably the closest to "standard." Good luck! Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Daniel - I don't think we have a latkes recipe here at Milk Street so I can't offer advice on how to modify that recipe without a microwave. Each specific recipe will likely require different instructions to switch from a microwave to the stovetop or oven so, unfortunately, I can't offer any across-the-board suggestions. If you have a specific recipe in mind and can let me know what the microwave is used for in the recipe, I can try to provide alternate instructions. Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Lynn - I don't think there's a real issue in altering small-scale recipes by simply doubling the ingredients. This theory that it matters may come more from commercial baking production where it would likely make a greater difference. The only caveats is to make sure that the doubled amount can fit comfortably in your mixer so your dough or batter can mix properly. If you can't incorporate enough air during mixing, the cake may be dense and even potentially fall while baking if it lacks structure. Stella Parks over at Serious Eats has a great article on scaling recipes for different sized pans that also talks a little bit about doubling (she's firmly in the camp of "it's fine to double a small-scale recipe" too). Hope that helps! Best, Lynn

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Susan - Honey is a super-saturated solution of two sugars: glucose and fructose. The proportions of these two sugars are characteristics of the plants that bees feed on to make their honey. It's the glucose that crystallizes, so some types of honey are more resistant to crystallization because they have low glucose. Crystallized honey is perfectly fine and normal. Some even argue that crystallized honey is even better since crystallization is a sign that your honey hasn't been altered through pasteurization or filtering. You can decrystallize honey but putting the jar in a pot of water and heating it over very low heat. The honey will return to its liquid state but will likely not stay there for long. Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Chris Kimball

I use the paddle to make a batter - a thick cake batter for example since it will do a good job of incorporating dry and wet ingredients without overworking the flour mixture. (In. general, one does not want to overmix cake batters since yo can develop gluten which will toughen the final product.) I use the whisk for egg whites, whole eggs, creaming butter -0 anytime one is trying to incorporate air into a mixture.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Lynn - You've got the right idea by using a piece of bread. For both, make sure to keep them stored as airtight as possible. You could also try a sugar saver for storing brown sugar. These work pretty well and are fairly inexpensive. They even sell plastic containers now with a sugar saver built in, which are an even better deal. Best, Lynn C.

Answered by Lynn Clark

Hi Eileen - Canned tomato paste can be transferred to an airtight container and stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks or frozen for a few months. I would portion it into and ice cube tray, freeze, then transfer the portions to a freezer zipper-lock bag so you can defrost only what you need. I actually prefer tomato paste in a tube. It's a little more expensive but easier to open, portion, and store. The manufacturers say it will keep in the fridge for at least a couple of months before the flavor will begin to change but I know mine has been in the fridge for much longer than that and I don't really notice a difference. Best, Lynn C.