LITTLE ROCK — It has been years since I’ve bought a pouch of chili seasoning and almost a decade since I’ve purchased taco seasoning.
And you’re just as likely to find homemade chicken broth in my freezer as you are a can of Swanson in the pantry.
Learning to make common convenience products at home is simply one of the best things I’ve done to expand my cooking repertoire and food dollar.
For many cooks (especially those preparing meals for their families), finding a balance between convenience and homemade can be difficult. You want food that is nutritious and wholesome, yet you can’t spend all day in the kitchen. And you want foods your family will actually eat.
Making batches of commonly used convenience foods like taco seasoning, packaged oatmeal and pie crust not only saves money; you can tailor things to your specific tastes.
My journey to cooking mostly from scratch began because I was lazy. Too lazy to go to the store. But not too lazy to take an inventory of the pantry and realize I had all of the ingredients on hand to make what I wanted if I could only find a recipe for it.
Other things I learned to make from scratch out of curiosity or necessity. Now I cook (mostly) from scratch because that’s what tastes best to me.
But I don’t make everything from scratch. Canned beans are the only kind you find in my pantry. And if you poke around you’re likely to find a box of pasta shells and cheese sauce (or two). In the freezer there’s homemade jam and meatballs alongside the Pillsbury biscuits and Bertolli Braised Beef and Gold Potatoes dinner for two.
Some of my favorite resources for make-it-yourself recipes include The Homemade Pantry 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making by Alana Chernila, Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese and a 1970s edition of Make-a-Mix Cookery by Karine Eliason, Nevada Harward and Madeline Westover (an updated Make-A-Mix was published in 2006, but I have not read it).
Say goodbye to those dusty paper packets forever. Homemade “instant” oatmeal is just as easy to make on a sleepy morning as the packaged kind.
Easy Oatmeal Mix
6 cups old-fashioned oats 1/2 cup packed brown sugar or to taste 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon OR other
spice as desired (see note) 1 teaspoon salt Dried fruit such as cranberries, apples or
raisins, optional
Heat oven to 300 degrees. Spread oats on a baking sheet and bake 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Cool slightly. Combine oats, sugar, cinnamon and salt and mix well. Place about half of the oat mixture in a food processor or blender and pulse to a rough powder. Transfer to a large, wide-mouth container with a lid along with the remaining oat mixture. Add dried fruit, if using, and mix well. Cover. Will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for about 1 month or frozen for 6 months. To prepare: In a serving bowl, combine about1/2 cup oat mixture with boiling water (up to 1 1/2 cups), cover and let stand 5 minutes. Makes 12 to 15 servings. Note: We like a combination of 2 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger and a generous pinch ground cloves, aka Pumpkin Pie Spice.
Recipe adapted from The Homemade Pantry 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making by Alana Chernila
This crust can be prepared and refrigerated up to 3 days in advance or frozen for up to 6 months.
Pie Crust
1/3 cup cold water 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1/2 teaspoon salt (see note) 3/4 cup shortening, well chilled OR 1 cup
butter, well chilled (see note) 21/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for
dusting
In a spouted cup, combine water, cider vinegar and salt and stir until salt dissolves. Place in freezer for 10 minutes.
Cut the shortening or butter into 1/2-inch squares and combine it with the flour in a mixing bowl and toss to thoroughly coat fat with flour. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, blend flour and fat until mixture resembles coarse meal.
Sprinkle chilled liquid over flour mixture and stir gently with a fork. When dough starts to come together, turn out onto a lightly floured surface and press mixture into a ball.
Divide dough into two portions. Shape each portion into a disc. Wrap each in wax paper or plastic wrap. Refrigerate about 1 hour or up to 3 days or freeze up to 6 months. (Thaw discs in the refrigerator if freezing before rolling, or roll as directed and then freeze in aluminum pie plates to fill and bake directly from freezer.) Let dough stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes before rolling. Unwrap the dough and place one of the discs on a lightly floured surface. Starting from the center, roll dough and use as recipe directs. Makes enough for 2 9-inch pies. Note: If using salted butter, omit salt.
These pastries can be savory or sweet, depending on your mood.
Toaster Pastries
1 batch pie crust (enough for 2 9-inch pies) 1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water 6 tablespoons filling such as jam, chocolate-hazelnut spread, chocolate (see notes), prepared pesto and ricotta cheese, tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, scrambled eggs and crumbled sausage Sugar or dried herbs and ground black pepper, optional
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. For Pop Tart-style pastries: Roll the first disc of pastry on a lightly floured surface into a 9-by-12-inch rectangle, trimming edges with a knife. Cut the rectangle into six smaller rectangles. Gently separate rectangles from counter and lay them on the prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches between them. With a pastry brush, “paint” each rectangle with beaten egg. (You will have some egg left over; set it aside.) Mound 1 tablespoon of filling in a thin line down the center of each rectangle. Roll out second disc of dough, repeating steps to create 6 rectangles.
Lay a rectangle of pastry over each filling-topped pastry.
Alternately, roll dough as directed above, but cut into circles using a 2-inch biscuit cutter. Place a very small spoonful of filling in the center of half of the dough circle. Top each filled circle with a second circle of dough.
Press the edges with the tines of a fork to seal. Brush tops with beaten egg and prick a few holes in the top of each pastry with a fork. Sprinkle tops with sugar if using sweet filling or with dried herbs or coarse ground pepper for savory filling, if desired.
(Pastries can be frozen at this point on the baking sheet. Transfer frozen pastries to a freezer-safe container, separated by layers of parchment. Bake directly from freezer when ready to serve.)
Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack for about 20 minutes.
Store tightly covered for up to 3 days, heat in toaster oven for 375 degrees for 5 minutes.
Notes: If using salted butter, omit salt. For an easy chocolate filling, combine unsweetened cocoa powder, softened butter and granulated sugar to taste to form a paste.
Recipe adapted from The Homemade Pantry 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making by Alana Chernila
Whole-Milk Ricotta
Cheese
1 gallon whole milk 1 quart cultured buttermilk Sea salt, to taste, optional
Line a colander with fine-weave cheesecloth, several layers of loose-weave cheesecloth or a clean tea towel.
Combine milk and buttermilk in a large pot. Heat mixture over medium heat to 180 degrees, stirring frequently to prevent scorching.
Remove from heat and let rest 30 minutes, or until curds form. Do not stir.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer curds to lined colander and let drain 1 to 2 hours, depending on desired consistency. The leftover whey will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. It can be used as the liquid in pancake batter or bread.
Transfer drained mixture to a bowl and stir in salt, breaking up any large curds as you mix. Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Makes about 3 cups.
Taco Seasoning
1/4 cup onion powder 3/4 cup chili powder (see
notes) 1 tablespoon salt 2 tablespoons all-purpose
flour 1 tablespoon garlic powder 2 tablespoons ground cumin 2 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes or to taste (see notes) 2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules 3 tablespoons dried oregano Ground red pepper (cayenne) to taste, optional
In an airtight container, combine all ingredients and mix well. Use 2 tablespoons seasoning and 1/3 cup water per pound of ground beef or chicken. Makes about 2 cups. Notes: I use a combination of light and dark chili powder. Recipe as written makes a medium-hot seasoning.
Tomato season is right around the corner, and this recipe for a homemade version of sun-dried tomatoes is a great way to make use of a bumper crop.
Oven-Dried Tomatoes
4 pounds ripe Roma tomatoes 11/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil 4 medium garlic cloves,
roughly chopped 1 tablespoon dried herbs de
Provence OR a combination
of oregano and basil Salt and ground black pepper
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Core the tomatoes, slice them in half vertically, then place them cut-side up on prepared baking sheets.. Drizzle1/2 cup of oil evenly over tomatoes, and season with garlic, herbs de Provence, salt and pepper. Flip tomatoes cut-side down, transfer to oven, and bake until skins have loosened, about 30 minutes.
Remove tomatoes from oven and reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees. Pour off any liquid in bottom of pan into medium bowl. Using tongs, carefully remove and discard tomato skins. Return tomatoes to oven for 30 minutes.
Remove tomatoes from oven and again pour off any liquid into bowl. Using tongs, carefully flip each tomato half and return to oven until tomatoes are visibly shrunken, dry, and slightly dark around edges, 2 to 2 1/2 hours, pouring off liquid as necessary every 30 minutes.
Transfer baking sheets to wire rack, and allow tomatoes to cool to room temperature. Transfer tomatoes to clean bowl and cover completely with remaining olive oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 4 weeks. (If freezing tomatoes, do not cover with oil; transfer to zipclose freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months.) Reserve tomato liquid for another use.
Recipe adapted from americastestkitchenfeed.com
Barbecue Sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1/2 cup finely chopped onion 1 tablespoons minced garlic 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons Worcestershire
sauce 1 cup ketchup 3 tablespoons mustard or to
taste 1 teaspoon hot sauce or more
to taste 1/3 cup Dr Pepper 11/2 teaspoons chili powder Salt and ground black pepper
Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Serve immediately or cool and store in a covered jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Makes about 2 1/2 cups.
Recipe adapted from Make the Bread, Buy the Butter by Jennifer Reese
Food, Pages 31 on 05/30/2012