Cooking basics - I made mayonnaise, why do we buy it?

[1967mama]

My husband is at the library RIGHT NOW, picking up my copy of "Make the Bread, Buy the Butter!"  Can't wait to dive into it! Love the great things I see recommended on these forums!

Edited to add: One chapter in and enjoying this book immensely! Author is hilarious!

[SpeedReader]

I made vanilla extract from a bottle of dark rum and about 1/8 pound of vanilla beans from an inexpensive online source.  It's cheaper than store-bought and with a richer flavor. 

[RetiredAt63]

Interesting - did you find a recipe that called for the dark rum?  Most seem to call for Vodka.  I have thought of buying the beans at Costco and using Alcool from the SAQ.  Not very motivated though, since the Kirkland vanilla extract is a good price and good flavour.  Is the flavour that much better?

I made vanilla extract from a bottle of dark rum and about 1/8 pound of vanilla beans from an inexpensive online source.  It's cheaper than store-bought and with a richer flavor.

[Russ]

I make my own vanilla extract too

Interesting - did you find a recipe that called for the dark rum?  Most seem to call for Vodka. 

just depends on the flavor you want. vodka will be more pure vanilla, spiced rum will have some rum spice flavor. I've used bourbon before and that was pretty good too.

I have thought of buying the beans at Costco and using Alcool from the SAQ. 

I would recommend buying your beans online. better quality, more options (the beans taste very different depending on where they're from), and waaaay cheaper

Not very motivated though, since the Kirkland vanilla extract is a good price and good flavour.  Is the flavour that much better?

yes it is

[1967mama]

For those who have bought vanilla beans online, would you mind posting the link? Really want to get some vanilla going -- to be ready in time to give as Christmas gifts!

[SpeedReader]

I ordered mine from Vanilla Saffron Imports, www.saffron.com. The 1/8 pound pack was just about enough to put in a 750ml bottle of dark rum.  Just pour out a little of the rum to make space in the bottle, then cut the ends off the beans and drop in the bottle.  Keep in a dark place and shake every so often. It's supposed to be OK to use in a month, full strength in six months.

I stuck the cut-off end pieces into a pint jar with white sugar, to make vanilla sugar.  It smelled really raw at first but has mellowed nicely over time.

[avongil]

It might taste better, but cost effective some things are not.  Mayo is something i'm on the fence about, the commercial stuff has lots of air whipped in it and is arguably lower calorie per volume. Dirt cheap too.  Don't know if I can touch the price of it, considering the cost of oil.  High quality oil and free range eggs no way.  Cheap eggs and cheap oil - maybe, but it might taste worse.  Experiment... I stopped, for the limited amount I use it the jar is ok and last a year.

Cheese, not cost effective. You just can't get milk cheap enough!  Home made cheese is impossible to make cheaper than store brand.
Ketchup - no way. 1$  for 32oz when its on sale. 

Beware - lots of things are fun and taste great, but cost effective maybe not. 

The mixes or convenience packages, like honey mustard or cocktail sauce are generally very cost effective to make or mix.

Calculate!

[avongil]

I made vanilla extract from a bottle of dark rum and about 1/8 pound of vanilla beans from an inexpensive online source.  It's cheaper than store-bought and with a richer flavor.

Trader Joes!!! I don't know when, but they get shipments of vanilla beans for 1$ each. Insane. Made it with vodka, but great idea il try dark rum.  I bought 6 beans last time. Foolish, should have purchased 12. If anyone knows when they get them in stock , let us know. 

[galliver]

For those who have bought vanilla beans online, would you mind posting the link? Really want to get some vanilla going -- to be ready in time to give as Christmas gifts!

Not online, but you could try local shops...my sister came to visit and was shocked that our local tea shop, which also has a large selection of bulk herbs&spices, sold vanilla beans for $1/ea. And they were big ones, vs the tiny sad ones you get at $6/ea at the grocery store. I also picked her up some of the Vanilla&Saffron imports ones from Xanath Ice Cream in San Francisco. I think she liked them...she wasn't making extract though, she was using them in baked goods.

[SisterX]

Ha, vanilla extract is one of those things I've been making for myself so long that I forgot others typically don't DIY it.
I've only ever used vodka, though, I'll have to try the rum.  My most recent batch was amazingly budget friendly since our ex-neighbor was a liquor distributor and he decided it wasn't worth his time/effort to move a bunch of his tasting bottles, so he gave them to us.  I immediately grabbed some of the vodka and made a new jar of vanilla extract.  Should probably start another batch soon, before all the vodka gets drunk.  :)  Also, will look through for a bottle of spiced rum.  Can never have enough vanilla extract.

[Kaydedid]

Cost effective? Maybe
Loaded down with preservatives and artificial sweetners?  definitely not

We made "home made" ranch the other night. Greek yogurt milk and a ranch seasoning pack (I need to figure out the right combo of seasonings to make my own). Sure tasted good though

Try this seasoning mix.  I've only made a dip with it using olive oil and Greek yogurt, but it was definitely ranch.  You could also mix with sour cream, and use milk to thin to desired consistency.
Note:I got this off another blog, don't remember which else I'd credit it.

10T dried parsley
5t dried dill
5t garlic powder
5t dried onion flakes or powder
3t dried basil (optional)
1/2t pepper (I used more)
1t salt (sea tastes a bit better, and I used more than recipe-taste it when you mix with wet ingredients)

Mix and store in air-tight container.  Mix with yogurt/sour cream when ready to use.

Also, if you just want a small batch here and there, just divide everything by 10ish.

And speaking of tahini, the book Nourishing Traditions has an AWESOME tahini salad dressing recipe.  I cheat and use regular products a lot with their recipes (ie kikkomans soy sauce vs fermented-organic-kissed-by-fairies soy sauce).

[chouchouu]

I've never made mayo but rarely eat it. I make our salad dressings, hommus, curry sauces(I get all the spices in bulk from an Indian grocer) and tomato sauce. I occasionally make stock but prefer the store bought stuff, has more flavour and doesn't take up so much space in our small freezer. I had bad luck with making borscht from scratch, it started growing but we made a fine batch of quince cordial many years back.

[kite]

We make all our bread.  Actually,  anything we eat that has flour in it is made from scratch in our kitchen.   I've made mayo before,  but don't make it regularly at home.  We do make other salad dressings from scratch all the time.   Mainly to use up the last of whatever is in a jar of mustard or jam (the latter of which has a 50% likelihood of being homemade).  We're supposed to rinse the jars that go into our recycling bucket anyway,  and it seems silly to wash out the flavor from a jar of dijon mustard and send them down the drain when there's one more meal it could contribute to instead. 

[LatteLaura]

I just finished Make the Bread, Buy the Butter, by Jennifer Reese of http://www.tipsybaker.com/ , which deals with this whole debate. Why do we decide that certain things are make-able, while others aren't? She spent a year (or more?) making all kinds of stuff, to decide what was worth it. Some of the things I expected to be too much trouble, or require too much skill (ginger beer, kimchi, camembert) are apparently not so bad. (Also, it's an enjoyable read.)

Thanks for the recommendation- I'm going to read it.

[LatteLaura]

What a great thread!

I make:

Vanilla syrup for my morning latte
Taco Seasoning
Salad dressing
Pesto from our garden basil
Croutons & bread crumbs from the heels of loaves of bread

[LatteLaura]

I make my own BBQ Sauce:

1 cup ketchup
1 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup honey
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

Whisk together all ingredients. Bring to a boil. Simmer 30 minutes. FANTASTIC! Totally worth investing in a bottle of liquid smoke at the grocery store, even if you've never used it before.  Just had it on BBQ chicken the other night --- sooooo good!

I am definitely going to try making this next- thanks for the recipe!

[NCGal]

Haven`t tried this yet but it`s a recipe for Hidden Valley Ranch substitute. It`s from a chapter on pantry basics in a book by Mary Ostyn called Family Feasts for $75 a Week:
10 saltines finely crushed
3/4 cup dried parsley flakes, crushed
1/4 cup minced onions
1/4 cup onion powder
1/4 cup garlic powder
1 tablespoon dried dillweed
Combine all ingredients in medium-size container and shake well.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 6 months.
(For ranch dressing combine 1 tablespoon with 2 cups sour cream)

[Doomspark]

Great thread!

I've just started making my own hummus - way cheaper than storebought.  I'm going to try my own tahini next.

Made my own laundry detergent last night as well and will be trying it out this weekend.

I used to make my own bread, and really need to get back into doing that.

[teen persuasion]

Great thread!  Lots of things I have to try, like the mayo and ranch seasoning, I've been meaning to try them sometime.

Like another poster, I always laugh at the mixes, like pancake mix, biscuit mix, etc.  How much more time does it take to measure a bit of baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar?  So we make pancakes, waffles, biscuits, muffins, quickbreads all the time.  I've made yogurt, but not recently.  I make mozzarella cheese for pizza, and ricotta.  I'll use the leftover whey in the baked good mentioned before, in place of the milk.  We like the results better than milk., and it uses up what some would just throw away.

[kite]

Great thread!  Lots of things I have to try, like the mayo and ranch seasoning, I've been meaning to try them sometime.

Like another poster, I always laugh at the mixes, like pancake mix, biscuit mix, etc.  How much more time does it take to measure a bit of baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar?  So we make pancakes, waffles, biscuits, muffins, quickbreads all the time.  I've made yogurt, but not recently.  I make mozzarella cheese for pizza, and ricotta.  I'll use the leftover whey in the baked good mentioned before, in place of the milk.  We like the results better than milk., and it uses up what some would just throw away.

Doh! 
How could I not have thought to do this!
You may have changed my life.

[grantmeaname]

This thread is making me seriously hungry!!

How many of you guys give some of these things away as gifts? It obviously wouldn't work with mayonnaise, but vanilla extract, tahini, jam, and the snooty cheeses could all be really nice presents!

[LatteLaura]

This thread is making me seriously hungry!!

How many of you guys give some of these things away as gifts? It obviously wouldn't work with mayonnaise, but vanilla extract, tahini, jam, and the snooty cheeses could all be really nice presents!

Great idea!   I've given away homemade beef jerky and cookies for Christmas gifts.  This year we have been cranking out the garden-fresh pesto and are thinking of giving it for gifts also.

[horsepoor]

This thread is making me seriously hungry!!

How many of you guys give some of these things away as gifts? It obviously wouldn't work with mayonnaise, but vanilla extract, tahini, jam, and the snooty cheeses could all be really nice presents!

I usually load visitors up on jams and relishes when they're leaving.  Downside - I never get my canning jars back.

[grantmeaname]

Instate a one-jar admission price on your house.

[SpeedReader]

For gifts that aren't actually being canned, like fresh salsa or cranberry relish, I try to re-use jars that commercially-bought items came in.  Otherwise, I like the one-jar admission price idea!  :-)

[kite]

Been making pickles all week.  First year we've had such a steady stream of cukes out of rhe garden.   So easy, too! 

[tanhanivar]

Has anyone made chocolate at home? I've seen a few recipes around using coconut oil to make dark chocolate.

Any preferred recipes for flour tortillas?

Corn tortillas would work too, though they'd just end up as tortillas chips :P

I use this recipe, because it's pretty painless and not at all fussy, while still giving good results.

http://thecafesucrefarine.com/2013/08/best-ever-homemade-flour-tortillas/

Biggest tip I can give is to NOT oil the pan. I actually use a well seasoned casted iron griddle for these, but even with a stainless steel pan, not oiling works better.

Also ::facepalm:: we make jam and marmalade. This is such an ingrained part of everything I do since it's also a side business, that I don't even think about it when I'm listing stuff like this.

The tortillas were not an unmitigated success. Maybe it's been too long since I did them, but I suspect it was the GF flour. The mixes have gotten radically better in the last few years, but something still don't *quite* work. They tasted great fresh, but the next day were Dwarf Bread.

Next time I'll just make them with wheat flour and have them all to myself :)

[1967mama]

Here's a link to the "skinny" chocolate I make with coconut oil:

http://thenewlighterlife.com/trim-healthy-mama-skinny-chocolate-3-different-ways/

Delicious and addictive!

[Mrs. Frugalwoods]

Hummus and salad dressing are homemade almost weekly. We don't use a lot of condiments, we tend to squeeze fresh limes over stuff a lot... we really like limes. And they're cheap at Costco! I think we have 10+ in our fridge right now.

[somecobwebs]

Mm, what a yummy thread <3

Seriously, thank you guys for these recipes. I am especially excited to try these tortillas, and I've been meaning to make yoghurt for a while.

It seems like people are going back and forth about the cheese making, though. As someone who loves Brie/San Andre, I really do wonder if fancy cheeses like that might be cost-effective to make?

[kite]

Mm, what a yummy thread <3

Seriously, thank you guys for these recipes. I am especially excited to try these tortillas, and I've been meaning to make yoghurt for a while.

It seems like people are going back and forth about the cheese making, though. As someone who loves Brie/San Andre, I really do wonder if fancy cheeses like that might be cost-effective to make?

I haven't found cheese making to be particularly cost effective if I have to buy the milk.   If I have a lot of left over full fat milk, I'll make ricotta to throw onto a pizza or in an omelet.   My usual inspiration is that the stuff will go bad if I don't turn it into something else.   

[1967mama]

My favourite salad dressing is 1 part olive oil, 1 part balsamic vinegar, a few garlic cloves minced, sea salt and pepper. I don't even measure any more. So easy and costs pennies on the dollar!

[Dicey]

Lots of great ideas here. I am really enjoying this thread. Here are two more that are staples for me:

Refried Black beans. I crock-pot batches and freeze them. So easy with an immersion blender. No added salt is a plus. We have Taco Tuesday every week, so we go through a lot of beans in this family. I also had a bunch of canned beans to use up, so I have hidden kidney and even garbanzo beans in the black beans. If you blend the heck out of it until it's really smooth, they'll never know you did.

For homemade hummus, starting with dried chickpeas makes them even cheaper, yummier and healthier. As with black beans, massive blending to create a creamy texture is key. In both cases, I love that the dried beans are shelf stable until cooked and there is far less waste.

I go through a lot of vanilla, but at 6.99 for 16 oz, even the Costco stuff adds up. I buy their Vanilla beans (seasonal so always fresh when they have it) and Kirkland 1.75 liter vodka. I always have a bottle steeping and would not go back to store bought. I'd love to give it as gifts, but I always seem to use it up. Recently I saw a bottle of vodka at an estate sale but it looked old. Does anyone know what the shelf life of vodka is? Other than as vanilla, I don't use/drink it.

[senecando]

Pine nuts cost a fortune anyway, and my pesto never comes out quite right, so maybe that is the problem.

You mean you don't pick your own pine nuts?  Hereabouts they're free for the picking, if you know where to go.  Now shelling enough for pesto (or anything other than eating out of hand) is a major PITA.

I assume you're west of the Rockies? If not, please tell me your secrets.

[Thegoblinchief]

Just made homemade flour tortillas. ZOMG. Never buying store crap again.

Used this recipe:

http://www.ogdenpubs.com/uploadedFiles/Media_Library/2012/GRT/homemade_flour_tortillas.pdf

Don't have any lard (yet - I plan to get some from my pastured meat supplier soon) so I used Crisco. I also substituted half of the white flour with whole wheat. Next time I'll try 100% whole wheat.

[JoyBlogette]

I go through a lot of vanilla, but at 6.99 for 16 oz, even the Costco stuff adds up. I buy their Vanilla beans (seasonal so always fresh when they have it) and Kirkland 1.75 liter vodka. I always have a bottle steeping and would not go back to store bought. I'd love to give it as gifts, but I always seem to use it up. Recently I saw a bottle of vodka at an estate sale but it looked old. Does anyone know what the shelf life of vodka is? Other than as vanilla, I don't use/drink it.

How many vanilla beans do you add to a 1.75L of vodka?  I love to bake and go through a TON of vanilla.  I have a huge bottle that I bought in Mexico, but when that runs out I'd like to try making my own.  As far as I know, vodka will last forever if unopened.

[aclarridge]

My wife is great about this, we make (well mostly she makes) bread, chicken/beef/veggie stock, tomato sauce, various veggie preserves, jams, to name a few. This activity would increase to crazy proportions if we became FI and moved out of our small condo.

[hermoninny]

I go through a lot of vanilla, but at 6.99 for 16 oz, even the Costco stuff adds up. I buy their Vanilla beans (seasonal so always fresh when they have it) and Kirkland 1.75 liter vodka. I always have a bottle steeping and would not go back to store bought. I'd love to give it as gifts, but I always seem to use it up. Recently I saw a bottle of vodka at an estate sale but it looked old. Does anyone know what the shelf life of vodka is? Other than as vanilla, I don't use/drink it.

How many vanilla beans do you add to a 1.75L of vodka?  I love to bake and go through a TON of vanilla.  I have a huge bottle that I bought in Mexico, but when that runs out I'd like to try making my own.  As far as I know, vodka will last forever if unopened.

I just started some vanilla for Christmas gifts.  I put in 5-6 beans (mine were small-ish) in each 16oz container.  I got 3 per 750ml bottle of vodka.  I think it really depends on the size of your beans.  I think I saw 2-3 and 4-5 in all the recipes I found.  Since mine were small, I went high.

[SpeedReader]

I used 1/8 of a pound of beans in a 750ml bottle, so I'd double that for a 1.75L.

[fa]

Mayo is an emulsion of egg yolk and oil.  Can you say heart attack?  It is best to avoid mayo, whether purchased or home made.  Bonus:  you don't have to worry about making your own and your your time to cook healthy foods.

[grantmeaname]

I have no problems with either egg yolk or oil.

[Thegoblinchief]

If you use something more potent like Everclear instead of vodka, you could get away with fewer beans. The stronger the alcohol content, the more thorough your extraction. Most commercial extracts are 160+ proof.

[frugaliknowit]

Hybrid salad dressing (mostly homemade):  Good Seasons mix, olive oil instead of canola, balsamic vinegar instead of regular.

[Russ]

Mayo is an emulsion of egg yolk and oil.  Can you say heart attack?  It is best to avoid mayo, whether purchased or home made.  Bonus:  you don't have to worry about making your own and your your time to cook healthy foods.

It's long been disproven that dietary cholesterol from egg yolks is "bad" for you, whatever that means, and fat is no less necessary then any other macronutrient. Have I missed anything?

[RetiredAt63]

An egg yolk is the actual bird's egg, which grows into the chick.  The white is extra, added on later in the oviduct.  So how can we go wrong eating something that contains complete nutrition?  Plus since all our cells are bounded by cell membranes, which contain fatty acids, if we had not eaten fat we would have to make it (our livers make a lot of cholesterol), or our membranes would collapse and we would be gooey little puddles.

People with low blood cholesterol have heart attacks, and people with really low cholesterol have higher over-all mortality.  People of my age have better health and mortality rates with moderately high cholesterol.

My eggs (yum) come from hens that run around with a herd of sheep.  Really yellow yolks, firm whites, way fresher than even the freshest store eggs.  I do use olive oil, not soy or whatever, for the mayo.  I think the choice of oil is more important than the little bit of egg in a tablespoon of mayo.

Mayo is an emulsion of egg yolk and oil.  Can you say heart attack?  It is best to avoid mayo, whether purchased or home made.  Bonus:  you don't have to worry about making your own and your your time to cook healthy foods.

It's long been disproven that dietary cholesterol from egg yolks is "bad" for you, whatever that means, and fat is no less necessary then any other macronutrient. Have I missed anything?

[adam]

Making mayo at home is almost always going to be more expensive than buying it at the store.  Someone pointed this out already, the cost of good, extra light olive oil (unless maybe you can find it in bulk, which I haven't been able to do) is always going to cost more than whatever garbage vegetable oil the mass manufacturers use.

That being said I made my own last night anyways because I need it for my ranch dressing.  Even if it ends up costing me something like $8/bottle (the ranch, not the mayo) I can't go back to store bought, homemade is just too delicious.

[hermoninny]

Making mayo at home is almost always going to be more expensive than buying it at the store.  Someone pointed this out already, the cost of good, extra light olive oil (unless maybe you can find it in bulk, which I haven't been able to do) is always going to cost more than whatever garbage vegetable oil the mass manufacturers use.

That being said I made my own last night anyways because I need it for my ranch dressing.  Even if it ends up costing me something like $8/bottle (the ranch, not the mayo) I can't go back to store bought, homemade is just too delicious.

Can you make mayo with something other than olive oil?  I found a new grocery store a few weeks ago that had huge bottles of grapeseed oil for less than $10.  It was crazy.  How long does homemade mayo last? 

[matimeo]

Any preferred recipes for flour tortillas?

Here's the recipe I made up/use for whole wheat flour tortillas.  They're delicious:

3 cups whole wheat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill bread flour- they didn't turn out with pastry flour)
1.5 teaspoons salt
1.5 teaspoons all natural baking powder
1/2 cup cooking oil of your choice (canola works fine)
Approximately 1.5 cups warm water
Directions

I use my Bosch bread mixer to do this, but you can mix in an bowl. Add flour, salt and baking powder and mix together. Slowly add in oil as you sift or mix the flour mixture. This makes little clumps of oil. Heat water for about a minute in the microwave until warm. Slowly add to the mixture as you mix until you achieve the desired consistency. The key to this recipe is to get the dough the right consistency. You want it to be quite moist, but not so wet that the dough will stick to your fingers. If you make it in a bread mixer, you may have to work the water in by hand before the dough paddles will knead the dough.
Prepare your surface by spraying vegetable oil where you will roll out the dough. I prefer to use an oil mister like the Misto over cooking sprays. Break off the desired size ball of dough and roll in your hands. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out very thin (they will rise some when cooked). If you're having trouble getting it to be round, try rolling from the middle out or in a circular motion around the outside edges. It can take a little practice to get it right, so be patient.
Heat a non-stick frying pan or griddle to medium and carefully lay out flat. Cook until bubbly and browned then flip and cook the other side.  Be careful to not overcook, as it makes them brittle.

[Threshkin]

Pesto, if you grow your own basil is cheap AND better than anything you'll ever buy. (I use macadamia nuts instead of pine nuts, as SO doesn't like metallic taste pine nuts can sometimes have)

This is very interesting. I'm going to do an experiment with different nuts (I have used walnuts in the past and I like the result).

We make pesto using almonds and fresh basil from the garden.  It is delicious!

[Threshkin]

Hummus and salad dressing are homemade almost weekly. We don't use a lot of condiments, we tend to squeeze fresh limes over stuff a lot... we really like limes. And they're cheap at Costco! I think we have 10+ in our fridge right now.

A great way to make lime or lemons last is to slice them thin, put them in a jar and fill the jar with honey.  Honey is a natural preservative will keep the limes and lemons fresh a long time.