Basic Recipes

The basics are important! These recipes will help you make ingredients from scratch and come up with substitutions when you're out of something.

Basic Roux

Serves/Makes: 2 cups Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 2/5
Ingredients: all-purpose flour, cooking oil...view the recipe

Basic Yogurt Cheese

Serves/Makes: 1 cup Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 1/5
Ingredients: low or non-fat yogurt...view the recipe

Chocolate Leaves

Serves/Makes: 0.5 cup Cook Time: 30-60 minutes Difficulty: 2/5
Ingredients: semi-sweet chocolate chips, several ivy, lemon, rose or other non-toxic leaves, vegetable shortening...view the recipe

Christmas Mincemeat

Serves/Makes: 6 lb. Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: cooking apples, peeled cored and finely chopped, shredded suet, raisins, sultanas, currants...view the recipe

Creole Cream Cheese

Serves/Makes: 8 Cook Time: > 2 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: Rennet, health store or drug store liquid, Pinch of salt, Half and half cream, buttermilk, gal. skim milk...view the recipe

Crystallized Ginger

Serves/Makes: 1 batch Cook Time: 1-2 hrs Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: Fresh ginger root, water plus more, Sugar...view the recipe

Dried Peppers

Serves/Makes: 1 Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: peppers, washed and dried...view the recipe

Homemade Coconut Milk

Serves/Makes: 1.5 cups Cook Time: 2-5 hrs Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: fresh coconut, hot water...view the recipe

Homemade Marscarpone

Serves/Makes: 2 cups Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: heavy cream, tartaric acid...view the recipe

Homemade Ricotta Cheese

Serves/Makes: 1 lb. Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: milk, lemon juice, plain unsweetened yogurt...view the recipe

Homemade Tortilla Chips

Serves/Makes: 6 Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 2/5
Ingredients: Flour tortillas -- 8" size, Olive oil, Kosher salt, Crushed red pepper flakes, Dried herb -- optional...view the recipe

Making Bacon

Serves/Makes: 1 lb Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: honey, kosher salt, pork belly, hickory chips, soaked in water...view the recipe

Mint Ice Cubes for Iced Tea

Serves/Makes: varies Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 1/5
Ingredients: mint leaves, ice tray, water...view the recipe

Nonpareils

Serves/Makes: 1 Cook Time: 1-2 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: chocolate, tempered, jar colored sprinkles...view the recipe

Old Fashioned Homemade Almond Paste

Serves/Makes: 2 pounds Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 4/5
Ingredients: Blanched almonds, Fresh lemon juice, Water, Sugar...view the recipe

Preserved Lemons

Serves/Makes: varies Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: Enough lemons to fill a sealable jar of your choosing, Coarse sea salt, Enough vegetable oil to cover all the lemons...view the recipe

Preserving Fresh Basil

Serves/Makes: 1 Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 1/5
Ingredients: fresh basil leaves...view the recipe

Ricotta Cheese

Serves/Makes: 4 Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: skim milk, fresh lemon juice...view the recipe

Roasted Garlic

Serves/Makes: 1 Cook Time: 1-2 hrs Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: Whole heads of garlic, Olive oil...view the recipe

Salad Crumble Mix

Serves/Makes: 6 pks Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: Ramen noodle soup mix (3 ounces), jar (2.6 ounces) sesame seeds, chopped cashews...view the recipe

Shake and Make Butter

Serves/Makes: 1 pint Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 1/5
Ingredients: Heavy cream, salt, ziploc baggie...view the recipe

Vanilla Sugar

Serves/Makes: 1 lb. Cook Time: > 5 hrs Difficulty: 1/5
Ingredients: granulated or powdered sugar, whole vanilla beans...view the recipe

Vanilla Whipped Cream

Serves/Makes: 2 cups Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 3/5
Ingredients: low-fat vanilla yogurt, light whipping cream, confectioners' sugar...view the recipe

Whipped Topping

Serves/Makes: 2 cups Cook Time: < 30 minutes Difficulty: 2/5
Ingredients: nonfat dried milk, very cold water, vanilla, sugar...view the recipe