Cooking Disaster Tips

Ever have a cooking disaster just as your guest have arrived for lunch or dinner? It's inevitable that you will discover that you over salted the stew or the cake has crumbled just as your guest walk through the door. Messing up recipe doesn't always mean you must start all over. Many times you can ward off a disaster with a quick fix. As a matter of fact my families and friends favorite rice dish is on that I thought would be a TOTAL disaster. By the way that recipe hasn't been added yet. :-)

If you over salted the stew or soup

Add a starch such as rice, pasta or a diced potato. The starch will absorb the extra salt and is seasoned by it. How much starch to add depends on how much you have over salted. Start with an 8 oz for each quart of broth or liquid. If you soup is too thick because of the starch,add water. Potatoes absorb less liquid than rice or pasta.

To save a batch of drippy jam or jelly.

Empty the jars of jelly back into the kettle. Wash the jars. Reheat the jelly until it boils, stirring constantly. When it looks like it has the right consistency remove from heat. Place a teaspoon of jelly on a saucer, and put in refrigerator to cool. After 15 minutes, check the refrigerated sample, if it is still too drippy, reheat the jelly and repeat the process until you get the right consistency. When you get the right consistency, refill the jars and seal with new lids and process in hot water bath.

If your gravy is lumpy

Put it in a blender. If the gravy is then too thin add flour diluted with cool water or broth (stir the cool liquid into the flour a little at a time). Cook the gravy again until it reaches the desired thickness.

When the top of your cheesecake cracks

Cover it up...To hide the flaws, cover the top of the cake with sour cream and add some fresh berries. Hide a cracked cheesecake by putting on a layer of raspberry jam. The top of the cheesecake can crack if it is cooked too long and at too high a temperature. Avoid future cracks by baking at a lower temperature - 300 to 350 is a good range. To make sure a cheesecake is cooked enough to be firm when cool, shake the pan in the oven. If the center of the cheesecake just barely jiggles, the cake is done.

If your Hollandaise Sauce curdles

Whisk 2 tablespoons of water into 1/4 cup of curdled hollandaise, keep whisking untill smooth. If the cooked sauce has just begun to separate, immediately put the pan of sauce in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking, beat until smooth. Then slowly reheat over simmering water.

Whipping cream

Chilling the bowl and beaters help the cream stay cold so it will develop good volume. For the stiffest foam, whip the cream by itself; stir in sugar an flavorings afterwards.

Egg whites

Fat keeps whites from foaming. The culprit is usually a tiny bit of egg yolk or a greasy bowl. White whip best when at room temperature. Add cream of tartar (1/8 tsp per large egg white) to the whites as they are whipped makes them stronger. For sweetened egg whites add sugar slowly after the foam is established.

Margarines

Don't substitute with light butter or margarine in recipe for baked goods. The light products contain more water and less fat by volume. They change the proportions of a recipe.

Perfect Pancakes

To avoid a pale, disappointing first batch of pancakes , apply a thin film of oil or butter to the skillet, remove any excess with a paper towel. Too much fat on the cooking surface produces those crusty edged uneven colored first pancakes

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