Baking Powder and Baking Soda Are Not the Same Thing and Other Honest Mistakes

When you’re making a new recipe, you think you have everything you need, but then realize you don’t. Oops, time for some substitutions… There often are some good swaps, like out of eggs? Use some applesauce instead! (It really works!) Other times, the most obvious substitutions will F you over, hard. Like baking soda for baking powder, yeah, learned the hard way- always consult the world wide web before taking matters into your own hands.

But let’s just imagine you have every ingredient and every tool you need, you are on the cusp of recipe success. That is until you decide to take some “creative liberties” with your recipe and just make it your own! Stop. Immediately. Just follow the directions if you’re just not in the mood for another failed recipe. Prime example- more butter in the filling for cinnamon rolls. Cinnamon rolls, but ooey-er and gooey-er. Adding too much butter caused them to sit in a pool of boiling butter while in the oven. That’s right, fried cinnamon rolls. Actually, that sounds delicious, but that was not the case. They were crispy in all the wrong ways. Long story short, had to stop at the store before Easter dinner.

Lastly, an American classic (or at least I like to think so) – mashed potatoes. Gummy, gluey, thick, or watery, thin, and runny. The room for error in this classic dish is immeasurable. Choose the right ingredients- russet potatoes, milk, and salt. That’s
what you’re using if you’re a mashed potato newbie. Don’t get fancy with the heavy whipping cream and other shit the IG food blogger told you about. While it may be tempting to use the electric mixer, this could cause your potatoes to get over-worked, opt for a classic potato masher instead.

Pro-tip: heat your milk and butter on low on the stove prior to mashing.

This will keep everything warm, and get your ingredients perfectly acquainted. Good luck. These tend to be a little different each time, but just stick to the classic ingredients and mash ‘em up by hand!

You’ve got this, chef! Think about it, if you’re learning all this now, you’re gonna be a kitchen baddie before you know it. We all make silly mistakes to look back and laugh at (even if you cried immediately after).