Momma rarely followed a recipe without making a few changes. Of course, I would come to realize as I grew older, many cooking substitutions were due to a meager pantry and tight budget.

I recall vividly as a teen baking a chocolate cake for her birthday. The rich chocolate icing was adorned with tiny pink roses and green leaves. It was beautiful if I say so myself.

However, one taste and you knew something wasn’t exactly right. Oh, everyone ate it; not a single person said anything about the unusual taste. That is, except my little brother. If you have siblings, you know how honest they can be!

Discovering we were out of shortening or lard, I had substituted hardened bacon grease. After all, it was grease – it should work as well. Take it from me, it pays to know good cooking substitutions.

For instance, did you know that when baking, you can replace one egg in every three with one tablespoon cornstarch? Follow this link to find out. Also, you’ll learn what to use when out of buttermilk or mayonnaise. And, wait until you the substitutions for gluten-free flour! Click here for more.

Do you know a good substitution for mayonnaise? Milk? Cracker crumbs? Honey? If so, you will find a wealth of information on this site featuring dozens of baking and cooking substitutions.

As I write this, we are faced with many of the issues Mother faced. Our economy and our lifestyles have changed over night. Running to the store every day or so may not be an option. Perhaps our challenging circumstances will require us to learn how to make do with what we have.

I would like to hear some of your favorite substitutions. Also, why not tell me some that haven’t been such good choices. I won’t tell (tee, hee)!

Want an easy, healthy soup with lots of options to suit your tastes? Click here for my recipe.