Index to
Grandpappy's Basic Recipes
Copyright © 1976,2008 by Robert Wayne Atkins, P.E.
All Rights Reserved.
Simple Recipes Using Ingredients Commonly Found in Many Kitchen Pantries
Useful During an Economic Depression
When Few Financial and/or Food Resources Are Available
or After a Natural or Manmade Disaster Which Disrupts Commerce
Preface to all the Recipes: Don't be afraid to modify the following recipes and use slightly different amounts of the listed ingredients. Or you can experiment and substitute other ingredients. That is what good cooks do - they find the right combination of ingredients in the right quantities that are pleasing to the taste. A little change can produce exciting and delightful results. Too much change can ruin a recipe.
When I was born in 1949 I didn't know anything about cooking. Therefore, with only a few exceptions, most of the recipes contained on this web site were acquired by reading recipe books or by watching someone else prepare food. All I did was take notes. Frequently I made minor adjustments to the ingredients in a recipe to please my own taste requirements. Therefore, you may discover that some of the recipes listed here are very similar to ones you are already familiar with. I make no apologies. Cooking is both an art and a science. And I practice both.
Abbreviations Used in All the Recipes
| tsp. = teaspoon | tbsp. = tablespoon | oz. = ounce |
Conversion Table
| 1 tsp. = 1/3 tbsp. | 1 cup = 8 ounces | 1 quart = 2 pints |
| 1 tbsp. = 1/2 ounce | 1 pint = 2 cups | 1 gallon = 4 quarts |
Useful Substitutions
1 tsp. baking powder = 1/3 tsp. baking soda + 1/2 tsp. cream tartar
1 cup butter = 1 cup shortening + 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. oil = 1 tbsp. melted shortening (or lard)
1 cup corn syrup = 1 cup honey = 1 cup sugar + 1/2 cup of the liquid used in the recipe
1 cup buttermilk = 1 cup milk + 1 tbsp. vinegar (or lemon juice)
1 cup nonfat milk = 1/3 cup nonfat dry milk + 1 cup water
1 cup whole milk = 1/3 cup nonfat dry milk + 1 cup water + 2 tbsp. melted butter
1 cup whole milk = 1/2 cup evaporated milk + 1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar = 1 cup corn syrup (decrease recipe liquid by 1/4 cup)
1 cup sugar = 1 cup honey (decrease recipe liquid by 1/4 cup)
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate = 3 tbsp. cocoa + 1 tbsp. shortening
Useful Cooking Hints
When available, use shortening to grease baking pans. If you use butter, margarine, or oils, they will be absorbed into the dough more quickly.
If a glass pan is used for baking, reduce the recommended oven temperature by 25 degrees.
Instant potatoes work well as a thickener for homemade stews.
Vegetables that grow above ground should be boiled with NO cover on the cook pot.
If fresh vegetables need to be soaked, do so BEFORE slicing to retain as much of their nutritional value as possible.
Cut meat across the grain before cooking to make it easier to eat after cooking.
Instant Nonfat Dry Milk
The flavor and texture of instant nonfat dry milk can be improved by mixing it with the proper quantity of water and then chilling it overnight in the refrigerator. This gives the powder a chance to completely dissolve and blend with the water.
Instant nonfat dry powdered milk will retain most of its nutritional value for at least 20 years, if it is stored in a cool and dry environment. However, as it ages it gradually loses its flavor. The flavor of old powdered milk can be enhanced by mixing it with the proper quantity of water and then adding a little vanilla extract (or a little granulated sugar) and letting it chill for a few hours in the refrigerator before serving. (Note: Another obvious solution would be to add a little chocolate flavoring.)
The gradual decline in the flavor of old powdered milk will not be noticed by most people if it is used as a dry ingredient in a baking recipe instead of drinking it as a beverage.
Baking Soda and Baking Powder
Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate.
Baking powder is baking soda plus cream of tarter plus a starch (such as corn starch).
If you need to, you may use baking powder in place of baking soda in a recipe but you can NOT use baking soda in place of baking powder in a recipe.
Fresh Eggs
You can check the quality of eggs by placing them in a bowl of cold water. If they float, they are NOT fresh and should NOT be used.
Hard Boiled Eggs: Put fresh eggs in water and bring to a boil. After the water starts to boil, wait at least seven minutes. Turn off the heat and put a lid on the pot but leave the eggs in the hot water for another five minutes. Then pour off the hot water and cover the eggs with cool water. Wait two minutes. Crack the egg shell by gently hitting it against a counter top at several different places on the exterior of the egg. Peel off the egg shell using the thin inner membrane that has separated from the boiled egg and is now between the egg and the exterior shell.
List of Grandpappy's Basic Recipes
- Useful Homemade Items When Store Bought Items Aren't Available (Revised 7-02-2007)
- Acorn Information, Identification, Processing, and Recipes (Revised 2-01-2006)
- Assorted Sweet Treats (Revised 7-01-2006)
- Bagel, Pretzel, Cracker, and Chip Recipes (No Eggs Required)
- Bean Recipes
- Bread and Biscuit Recipes (No Yeast or Eggs Required) (Revised 3-01-2007)
- Bread Recipes Using Oat, Rice, and Rye Flours
- Bread Recipes Using Sourdough Starter (No Eggs Required)
- Bread Recipes Using Yeast (No Eggs Required)
- Cake and Frosting Recipes (No Eggs Required) (Revised 10-24-2005)
- Candy and Fudge Recipes (Revised 1-03-2008)
- Cookie Recipes (No Eggs Required) (Revised 12-01-2006)
- Cornmeal Recipes (No Eggs Required)
- Fish and Other Aquatic Creature Recipes, such as Frogs and Turtles
- Grandpappy's Pemmican Recipe - A Native American Indian Survival Food (Revised 1-11-2008)
- Hickory Nut Recipes
- Kudzu Recipes (Added 10-01-2006)
- Meat Recipes (Revised 11-07-2005)
- Pie and Cobbler Recipes (Revised 4-01-2007)
- Poke Sallet Recipe (Added 4-19-2008)
- Potato Recipes
- Squirrel Recipes
- Wheat Berry Recipes (Revised 9-01-2006)
- White Rice Recipes
- Wild Game Recipes (Revised 01-01-2007)
- Home Gardening Tips (Index of Articles)
- How to Survive Hard Times (Index of Articles)
- Wilderness Survival Tips (Index of Articles)
Why Are So Many of the Above Recipes Egg Free?
I love eggs and I use eggs in a variety of the recipes I prepare on a regular basis. However, I am aware that fresh eggs might not be available under hardship conditions. Therefore, I have been on the lookout for good recipes that don't require eggs for many years. Good NO egg recipes are not easy to find.
Under hardship conditions you may have all the other necessary ingredients to prepare a recipe, but you don't have any fresh eggs. And a quick trip to the local store may not be an option.
If you just omit the eggs from the original recipe, you normally end up with a culinary disaster which your family will not eat. The basic recipe needs to be modified and other ingredients added to serve the original function of the eggs.
In you should find yourself in a situation where you don't have fresh eggs, then the above recipes can be used to produce delightful results to satisfy your family's desire for a tasty and nutritional meal.
The above recipes would also be useful for anyone who is allergic to eggs.
Revised April 19, 2008
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