Subs & Sizes
Abbreviations & Substitutions Pans / Molds / Dishes vs. cups Weights & Measures
Standard Abbreviations:
c. = cup; qt. = quart; gal. = gallon
tsp./t. = teaspoon; Tbls./T. = tablespoon __________
sm. = small; med. = medium; lg./lge. = large
pt. = pint; qt. = quart; gal. = gallon (4 qts.)
pk. = peck; bu. = bushel
doz. = dozen (12); gross = 144 (12 x 12) ___________
b. soda = baking soda
b. pwd. = baking powder
b. sug. = brown sugar
pkd. = packed (as in brown sugar) pwd. = powder or powdered pwd. sug. = powdered sugar/confectioner's
rd. = round/rounded
sq. = square
v. oil = vegetable oil ___________
You don't have ___?___, but you need it for a recipe. Substitute the following for many recipes. It was & is called "making do."
Invaluable NOTE to the younger crowd :)! I could write a short book on the values of being a stay-at-home mom for most of my married years. For years while raising the kids I always said that we "ate out" at a "new restaurant" every night AT OUR KITCHEN TABLE! It was because most of every menu was all new recipes. During 1 day a month I'd go through all my cut-out magazine and newspaper recipes, & the list of marked ones from spiral cookbooks, create the menus & have 30+ days of knowing what I'd make & bake every day. Talk about removing pressure & saving time! It was fabulous. Also, I'd grocery shop accordingly so I'd have all ingredients. What a variety of bless'd recipes we got to try :). And only one ever went into the garbage all our years!
I was raised to do things from scratch & loved the challenge and creativeness of "knowing" how to use many of the following "concoctions" instead of spending higher prices on something like buttermilk or unsweetened choc. squares for which I didn't have the money, but wanted to make so many recipes with them, so here are blessings to you, too.
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SUBSTITUTIONS / CONVERSIONS
Baking Powder (1 tsp.) = 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar + 1/4 tsp. baking soda
OR 1/4 t. b. soda & 1/2 c. sour milk, buttermilk,
or molasses & reduce recipe liquid by 1/2 c.
Buttermilk / Sour Milk (1 c.) = 1-2 T. lemon juice OR white vinegar + milk to = 1 cup; Let stand a few minutes, or use 1 c. plain yogurt.
Chocolate (1 sq. unsweetened) = 3 T. unsweet - ened cocoa + 1 T. veg. oil, stirred together
Cornstarch (1 Tbls.) = 2 Tbls. all-purpose flour (Never stir either directly into a hot liquid. Mix into dries or into a cool liquid first so you don't get lumps in the liquid you're trying to thicken, such as when making gravy.)
"heavy" Cream (1 c.) = 2/3 c. milk & 1/3 c. butter ---(don't know if this will sub for whipping cream, but is an old recipe sub. for sauces!)
Flour-All-purpose (1 c.) = Put "all purpose flour substitute" in a search engine & read of the many alternatives. Quite amazing!
Flour - Cake (1 c.) = 1 c. minus 2 T. all-purp. flour + 2 T. cornstarch
Flour - Self-rising (1 c.) = 1 c. all purpose flour + 1½ t. baking powder & 1/8 to 1/2 tsp. salt
Garlic Clove (1) = 1/8 t. garlic pwd. OR 1/4 t. garlic salt & reduce recipe salt by 1 tsp.
Herbs (fresh; 1 Tbls.) = 1 tsp. dried (then crush to use) OR 1/4 tsp. powdered herbs OR 1/2 tsp. herb salt & then reduce recipe salt by 1/4 tsp.
P.S. Only with the man's name do you pronounce the H; otherwise it's "urbs" as in "suburbs."
Honey (1 c.) = 1 to 1¼ c. sugar + ¼ c. liquid
Honey / Maple Syrup (one resource, after an equal 1 Tbls. of either sugar/honey/m. syrup, said only HALF honey or maple syrup to sugar.)
Marshmellows (1 c. mini) = about 10 lge. cut up
Milk -low-fat (1 c.) = ½ c. evap milk + ½ c. water
Onion (1 med, 2½" diam.) = 2 T. instant minced (rehydrated in little liquid) OR 1 tsp. onion pwd. OR 2 T. onion salt & reduce recipe salt by 1 tsp.
Spinach
10-12 c. torn leaves cooks down to about 1 cup.
1, 10-oz pkg. frozen = 1½ pounds fresh leaves or about 1½ c. after cooking
Sugar (1 c.) = 1 c. honey & reduce recipe liquid by 1/4 c., plus reduce baking temp by 25° OR sub 1/3rd to 1/2 honey-to-sugar & continue. Works best in breads, etc. (experiment). Read the honey/maple syrup item above.
Light or Dark Brown Sugar is caused by the amount of molasses, so it can be a matter of personal taste, & can be used interchangeably, BUT NOT liquid brown sugar. Go w/the recipe.
Sweetened Condensed Milk - It's a recipe: Into a blender put: 1 c. powdered milk, 2/3 c. sugar, 3 T. softened butter; & 1/3 c. boiling water. Blender/Mix till smooth. NOTE: This worked well in baked items like the Magic Cookie Bars, but it did NOT work for me in a No-Bake Cheesecake, as it didn't "set up," so it was served as a pudding - the flavor was great :)! In the 1970s-80s this was so economical ($) in order to try so many recipes.
Tomato Juice (1 c.) = ½ c. tom. sauce + ½ c. water
x x x x x
Many baked goods can be made in all sorts of Various Pans for their Shape and Size. You just have to possibly adjust the baking time, & once in a blue moon, the temperature. Then again, if you move up into the mountains, well . . ., that's another story :) !
1 - Width x Length x Height is for sq./rect./ovals
2 - Diameter x height is for rounds (rd.)
3 - Cup capacity refers to the size of a container & is the amount the container will hold, but is not the amount of batter or dough which can be baked in it.
3 x 7⅜ x?" OR 2¼ x 7⅝ x?" loaf - 4 cups
8 x 1¼" round cake pan
9" round pie plate
8½ x 2¼" ring mold - 4¼ cups
3⅝ x 8½ x 2⅝" loaf pan - 6 cups
7½ x 3" bundt tube pan
9 x 1½ round cake pan
10" round pie plate
5 x 9 x 3" loaf pan - 8 cups
7 x 11 x 1½" rectangle
8 x 8 x 2" square 9¼ x 2¾" ring
9 x 3½" bundt tube pan - 9 cups
7½ x 11 x 1¾" rectangle - 10 cups
9 x 9 x 2" square pan
10 x 15 x 1" jelly roll pan
8 x 3" rd. spring form pan - 12 cups
8½ x 13½ x 2" glass rect. pan
9 x 3½" angle food cake tube pan
10 x 3½" bundt tube pan
9 x 13 x 2" A STANDARD CAKE - 15 cups
9 x 3" rd. spring form pan - 16 cups 10 x 4" rd. angel food cake tube pan
10½ x 14 x 2½" roasting pan - 19 cups
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Another Gauge when a recipe calls for:
10" x 3½" Bundt = two 8" x 2" rounds
(NOTE: All of the older 8 & 9" round pans vary from 1⅛" to 1¾" high, so adjust to fill only up to 2/3rds full. Years ago, usually only round pans in sets for tiered cake decorating [i.e. wedding cakes; pans by the Wilton Co.] had 2" high sides.) In Grandma's day (last century), think of her having 6 choices. Today, you might have 60 choices!
A standard 12-cup muffin (cupcake) tin =
8½" x 4½" x 2½" loaf (longer baking time) =
9" x 1½" round =
8" x 8" x 1½" square
10" round = 9" x 9" x 2" square
one 9" x 2" round (thick) =
two 8" x 1½" rounds (thinner layers) =
10" x 15" x 1" jelly roll pan (will be real thin) =
one 8" x 8" x 2" (quite thick) square
P. S. Usually any cake & quick bread batters (except angel food & sponges) can be baked as cupcakes. It's a great way to have/control individual portions. Also, it's a bit more time, (but for me as a stay-at-home mom, my time was a way of saving money), you do not need to spend money to buy cupcake papers. Just grease the bottom & sides of the tins, fold some wax paper to cut a dozen rounds at once to line the bottoms, grease them & then flour -- you're good to go - takes 2-3 minutes.
NOTE: Baking times will vary depending on the pan you use (& your oven, & altitude if in the mountains), so learn to adjust, & prepare to check "doneness" with a toothpick or skewer a few times.
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NOTE
Today we have such a variety of baking pans, it makes the head spin. Let's just go back to Grandma's time of 70-100+ years ago and know that the BASICS were these:
1) 9 x 5" loaf pans for bread or meat loaf;
2) 8" and 9" round &/or square for layer cakes;
3) a 9 x 13" was the standard pan for cakes, cinnamon & other sweet rolls, dinner/bread rolls, bars, lasagna, scalloped potatoes, +???;
4) the traditional 10 x 15 x 1/2" rimmed jelly roll pan also doubled as a cookie sheet. (But in 1967, the one I got as a wedding gift was 10½ x 15½ - - & have used it all these years for all 10 x 15" recipes which have been great! Donna's comment)
5) Maybe a couple of no-rim cookie sheets.
6) And almost always there was an angel food cake pan. When 10-12 egg whites were used for an angel food cake, what did one do with the yolks?
My grandma's first option was to then make a yellow (because of the yolks) sponge cake in a 9 x 13 x 2" pan and top it with a brown sugar frosting. Her other traditional cake was a jelly roll, and it's exactly what it says it is. Again, it was another yellow sponge cake recipe, but thinner as it was made in a "jelly roll" pan, & after baking - rolling - cooling, was again rolled up after being spread with a jam or jelly (there is a difference between them, as there is with preserves), and coated with a sprinkling of powdered sugar. (In British English, there are jams & jellies, but also conserves and marmalades . . . think Paddington Bear!)
So out of a dozen eggs, you could get 3 cakes, plus have a yolk or two to put into a sauce, homemade pudding, or vanilla ice cream, or add to a certain cookie recipe. In Grandma's day and vocabulary, that was called "stretching it :)."
7) And last, but not least, Grandma might have had a pan aligned with a cultural recipe from her family heritage (the country her ancestors lived in). For Germany it could have been the Kugelhopf. For Italy, the Panettone. Norway has the Kransekake.
More Abbreviations:
approx. = approximately
env. = envelope/s lb./lbs., pd./pds., or #/#s = pound/s
oz. = ounce/s
pkg. = package/s pkt. = packet/s
° = degrees, as in temperature
temp. / temps. = temperature: For older recipes & cookstoves burning wood, the baker had to learn temps. by the feel of the heat on their hand. So recipes went like this:
Lukewarm = 175° F. (to keep "boiled" canning jars warm or to make meringues, etc.)
Slow = 200° to 275° F. [140° C.]
Moderately slow = 300° F. [150° C.] Moderate = 325° [165° C.], 350° [177° C.], 375° F. [190° C.] adjusted to each recipe
Moderately hot = 400° F. [200° C.] Hot = 425° F. [220° C.] to 450° F. [230° C.] Very hot = 475° F. [245° C.] to 525° F.
500° F = [260° C.]
P.S. "F" (Fahrenheit is used in the U.S. for calculating the temperature vs. Celsius [C.] on the metric scale which is used in most other countries worldwide.)
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Spoons & Cups & etc. = VOLUME - WEIGHT
dash = less than 1/8 tsp.
a pinch = 1/8 tsp. or less
a smidge = the same as above
a knob of butter = size of a walnut in a shell - about 4 - 5 tsp. or so
butter the size of an egg = 1/4 c.
heaping spoon = maybe 1½ to twice the measuring spoon amount heaping cup = maybe 1¼ - 1½ the cup size
3 tsp. = 1 Tbls. = 1 oz.
4 Tbls. = 1/4 cup = 2 oz.
5 Tbls. + 1 tsp. = 1/3 cup
8 Tbls. = 1/2 cup = 4 oz. for volume, but not always 4 oz./1/4# for weight; e.g. sugar is almost twice the weight of flour, as an "original, true" Pound Cake has twice the volume of flour to sugar.
11 Tbls. = 2/3 cup
12 Tbls. = 3/4 cup
16 Tbls. = 1 cup = 8 oz. = 1/2#
4 sticks of butter/margarine = 2 c. or 1# Hint: The best way to learn the U.S. spoon & cup measures is to bake cookies, bars, or a cake every week :)! Then you'll learn to appreciate Fannie Farmer of the 1800's cookbook fame, who created the speedy U. S. "cup & spoon volume vs. the weight" system, when you read international recipes listing ingredients like this:
450 grams (1 lb)
175 grams (6 oz)
50 grams (2 oz)
etc. . . . . .
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LIQUIDS
Size to Fluid Ounces as in Liquid VOLUME
1 Tbls. = 1/2 oz. (3 tsp. / 15 ml)
2 Tbls. = 1 oz.
1 jigger = 1½ fluid oz.
1/4 c. = 2 oz. (4 Tbls. / 12 tsp./60 ml)
1/2 c. = 4 oz.
a tea cup = generally 8 oz.
1 c. = 8 oz. volume (16 Tbls. / 240 ml)
4 oz. / 2 qts. = 1/2 gallon (gal.)
2 gills = 1 c.
1 cup liquid = 1/2 pint
1 pint = 2 cups = 1/2 quart
2 pints = 4 cups = 1 quart
2 quarts = 1/2 gallon
4 quarts = 1 gallon
1 British pint volume = 20 oz. = 2½ U. S. cups
HINT: For baking, it's a good thing to have 2 sets of measuring cups to save time: 1 for dries and 1 for liquids.
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Can SIZES-to-CUPS & some with "Approximate" WEIGHTS
an 8 oz. can = 1 cup = 8 oz.
#1 can = 1¼ c. + 2 tsp. = 10½ ounces
#300 can = 1¾-or-so cups = 14-16 oz.
#1-tall can = 2 c. = 1 lb. #303 can = 2 c. = 16-17 oz.
#2 can = 2½ c. = 1# 4 oz. (20 oz.)
a 20 oz. can = 2½ cups #2½ can = 3½ c. = 1# 13 oz.
a 32 oz. can = 4 cups / 1 qt.
#3 can = 5¾ c. = 3# 3 oz.
#10 can = 12-13 c. = 6½ to 7# 5 oz.
#5 can = 64 ounces = 2 quarts = 4 pints
P.S. Many times in recipes up till the WWII era a recipe will specify a can size, yet today, people have no idea how much that is. Years ago, items very seldom changed. There were standard tin sizes that had been used for over 100 years, and everyone knew what they were! But in the lifetime of those of us since WWII, can sizes like a 16 oz. can of pumpkin for the absolutely, hands-down, famous Libby Pumpkin pie, are not to be found because now it's a 15 oz. can!!! Yes, pull your hair out! And Evaporated Milk became a milk staple during the 1800s through WWII because it could be shipped. Many times you'll see a recipe call for a "small can" of milk which would be 5 oz. or 2/3rds cup. But today, who would know?!?
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Common Ingredients: WEIGHT/SIZE to CUPS
apricots - 3 c. dried = 1#
butter / shortening - 1 lb. = 2 c. cheese - American (grated) - 1 lb. (16 oz) = 4 c. cheese - Cream - 3 oz. = 6 Tbls. cheese - Cream - 8 oz. = 1 c. chocolate (& other baking) chips - 6 oz. = 1 c. chocolate (unsweetened) - 1 oz. = 1 sq. coconut - 5 c. = 1# dates - 2 c. chopped = 1#
eggs - 5 = about 1 c.
egg whites - 8 = about 1 c.
egg yolks - 8 = about 1/2 cup figs - 3 c. chopped = 1#
flour - All Purpose - 1# = 4 c. & up to 5⅓ c. (!) That gap seems too wide. I'd weigh if needed.
flour - Cake - 1# = 4½ c.
jello - sm. box = 3 oz; lge. box = 6 oz. lemon - 1 juiced = about 3½ Tbls. noodles - 1 c. cooked = about 1¼ c. NUTS - walnuts - 5 c. shelled = 1#
--- pecans - 4 c. shelled = 1#
---almonds - 4 c. shelled = 1# orange - 1 juiced = about 6 Tbls.
rice - 1 c. cooked = 3 cups (or it used to) sugar - brown - 1# = 2⅓ - 2⅔ c. packed
sugar- confectioner's/powder'd - 1# = 2⅔ c. sugar - granulated/white - 1# = 2 cups syrups (molasses, etc.) = 1# = 1⅓ c.
P.S. A Pound Cake begins with exactly what it says: a # of flour (4 c.), a # of sugar (2 c.), & a # of butter (2 c.). Weight varies w/cups because some ingredients are heavier than others. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SIZE by Containers
A pint or quart of berries is sold in a "volume" pint or quart container. Yet, frozen, they're sold by weight.
a peck of apples, pears, etc. = 8 qts. = 2 gal*
4 pecks = a bushel = 8 gallons in volume*
P.S. * Today a "bushel" of grain is measured in weight (60#s), as are some other products instead of the olden days of size. It's like weighing a # of feathers vs. a # of gold . . . they don't take up the same size, space, or volume. So it is with grains, some are heavier than others. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
METRIC to U. S. weight - size - volume
a milliliter / ml is 1,000th of a liter
1 liter (or litre) is 1.6-1.8 oz. more than a quart large soda bottles are a bit more than 2 qts.
a pound is 450 grams
a kilo / kilogram / kg is 2.2 pounds
P.S. Many times a European-based cookbook will have ingredients in grams & then U.S. weight, so you need a scale. Fanny Farmer is credited with creating the U. S. cups - oz. - volume & weight standardized system for cooking and baking. I can't imagine our world without our measuring system! What a blessing it is.