Tag Archives: do it yourself

How to make Onion Powder–DIY Onion Powder

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DIY Onion Powder--How to make Onion Powder

DIY Onion Powder–How to make Onion Powder

Recently I was chatting with some professional chefs online one of them was talking about using dried powders like garlic and onion in a recipe that he was playing with.  He wanted to know where he could find better quality powders.  The discussion quickly went from people being helpful, to people questioning whether any chef of good standing would ever use a dried product versus a fresh product. One person in particular, said absolutely not!  Others, said of course and then went on to make a case for when dried spices are needed, and in those cases how using dry spices make the dish better.  The discussion got me thinking about how often I use dried spices, and what dry ingredients I use.  The truth is that I am one of those cooks, who relies heavily on fresh ingredients.  The produce bin in my refrigerator is always stocked with, fresh thyme, parsley, mint, cilantro, basil, and whatever other herb is in season–ALWAYS.  I can’t imagine cooking without the use of fresh herbs.  At the same time, my cupboards are stocked with the dried version of all the fresh herbs that I just mentioned, and many, many other dry spices, like garlic powder, cumin, tarragon, onion powder…the list could literally fill this page!  If you’ve been following my blog, then you know that I make many of my own spices.   When the person in that forum asked about sourcing onion powder, my immediate thought was, why not just make it? So I did.  It’s a simple process, but the onion powder that you get from this process is the best that you will probably ever taste–or smell–the smell had me salivating–this is the stuff that great onion dips, and soups are built from!

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Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 6-8 hours–

Ingredients:

2 large onions sliced thinly

Directions: Evenly spread the sliced onions on a dehydrator sheet.

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If using an oven, place the onions on a parchment lined bake sheet. Set the temperature on your dehydrator to 125F.  If using an oven, set it to the lowest possible setting 150F.  Let the onions dehydrate until brittle, then remove and let cool.

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Once the onions have cooled, place them in a spice grinder/coffee grinder and blend into a powder.  Stop here if you want onion flakes,

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Transfer to an airtight container until ready to use.

 

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D.I.Y. Ground Ginger-How to Make Powdered Ginger

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How to make Powdered Ginger

How to make Powdered Ginger

 

If you’ve been on the fence about whether or not to purchase a dehydrator, my blogs this week may just get you off of the fence.  This week you may find yourself ordering  a dehydrator, or at the least adding one to your Christmas wish list. My dehydrator has been in constant use, and I can’t wait to share what I’ve been doing. So let’s get started! I’ve purchased fresh ginger so many times, and only used a fraction of it, the rest goes bad and then in the trash–a total waste! I was reading about drying in one of the books in my Modernist Cuisine set, and then I read a blurb in “Bon Appetite  Magazine”about powdering herbs and boom–light bulb–I thought to myself, why not powder your own ginger? So I did.  You’re probably asking yourself, “do I really need a dehydrator to do this?” The answer is no! You can do this in the oven set to 150F but you have to stay home to watch it! If you had a dehydrator you could set it and forget it–well not completely, but you wouldn’t have to worry about it burning.

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Prep time:5 minutes

drying time: 1.5-2 hours

Ingredients:

1 large bulb of fresh ginger

tools: spice grinder

Directions: remove the skin from the ginger, then slice the ginger thinly.

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Place the sliced ginger pieces on a piece of parchment paper, or on the sheets of your dehydrator and place in the dehydrator or oven, then set the temperature to 135 on the dehydrator, or 150F in the oven.

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Allow the ginger to dry until it become crisp. Transfer to the spice/coffee grinder

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and blend until nice and powdery.

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Store in an airtight container, it will be good for 8-12wks. Use this in any recipe that calls for ginger.  Add this to your favorite gingersnap recipe, and you will have some of the best gingersnaps that you’ve ever eaten!

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How to make Condensed Milk–Condensed Coconut Milk

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How to make Condensed Coconut Milk

How to make Condensed Coconut Milk

 

It’s not often that a recipe that I concoct requires the use of condensed milk.  Condensed milk is definitely one of those products that has a very specific use.  When I was a little girl I remember looking in my grandmother’s refrigerator and always seeing a can of the Eagle brand condensed milk.  Given that the same can was always in her refrigerator, I don’t think she had many recipes that required it’s use either.  I’m not exactly sure what is in the super sweet concoction sold in the can now, but when  I was making up the recipe for my Coconut chocolate bars, I decided that I needed to prepare my own. I’ve done this with almost every kind of milk, cows, coconut, and almond.  All come out perfectly.  If you are going to do this, then I suggest doing so when you have a few hours to spend at home.  Doing this over low heat, allows you more freedom to do other things while it cooks.  If you want to speed up the process, you can use higher heat, but that will require much more from you in terms of stirring and keeping a watchful eye.

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Prep time: none

Cook time: 2 hours

Total time: 2 hours

Ingredients :

2.5 cups of coconut milk (or milk)

3/4 cup of maple sugar (can use whatever sugar you’d like)

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 tablespoons of butter (optional)

Directions: Add milk, and sugar to a sauce pan and simmer over low heat for 1.5-2 hours, or until the milk is reduced by half.

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Once the milk has reduced(condensed) whisk in butter and vanilla extract. Pour into a container and let cool.

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It will thicken on it’s own as it cools. Allow the milk to cool completely before adding it to a recipe.

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