PrintIt's never in my shopping cart, except...
The "things I never buy" thread got me thinking about things I despise on their own, but sometimes I'll buy them for a particular recipe. Like margarine. I never, ever buy it, and I'd rather eat dry toast than with margarine. I'd never use it as a substitute for butter. Bu I do have a bread recipe that uses margarine and it's not the same with anything else. So sometimes I buy margarine just for that recipe.
I hate rolled oats and instant oatmeal (I love the steel cut) but sometimes I'll buy rolled oats for oatmeal cookies or other recipes.
Instant pudding? Not a big fan. I can't imagine how I'd ever serve it on its own. But I have an ice cream recipe that uses instant French Vanilla pudding in the base, and my FIL absolutely loves it.
Jell-o? Always hated it, always will. But I wouldn't object to using it in a recipe if someone I trusted told me that it was fabulous. Seems to me I used to use it for something...but I don't recall what it was.
What about you?
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20 Comments:
Instant potatoes--unless it's for potato soup (great thickener)
Cool Whip--unless it's for key lime pie (hubs won't eat it with anything
else. I don't like key lime pie) or cranberry salad
beth1 at 6:00PM on 03/08/08
Instant coffee -- for recipes that call for it and if I am desperate enough I will even drink it.
CoffeeMate, the powder kind -- for the pantry b/c once we ran out of half&half and milk and didn't even have a can of evaporated or condensed milk, it made for a REALLY bad morning. We must have really learned our lesson because one smallish container has lasted us a year. lol.
wookie at 6:23PM on 03/08/08
I'm with you on the instant potatoes - shudder! But I have used them for a potato bread recipe
Creamed Corn - as a vegetable leaves a lot to be desired, as part of my corn chowder its irreplacable.
Cottage Cheese - on its own, blech. In a vegetable lasagna recipe I make its delicious.
SayWhat at 9:14PM on 03/08/08
crisco. i would never use it to cook with but i love it for greasing cake pans.
cybercita at 10:31PM on 03/08/08
Instant coffee here too, for certain baking recipes. But I can never ever drink it.
brooke29 at 11:46PM on 03/08/08
Condensed cream soups. SO just loves the cheesy potato casserole which contains cr of chix soup. He also requests the chix recipe with cr of mushroom, swiss cheese and Pepperidge Farms stuffing at least once a year. It really is a tasty dish that you can stick in the oven and bake on a low temp when you're working out in the yard or gardening. When you come in all tired and hungry - ta da - delicious dinner. Don't tell anyone I told you that...
frederika at 12:18AM on 03/09/08
Cocoa Puffs .. except when my son the college professor comes to visit.
NanaJoie at 11:24AM on 03/09/08
Bologna. I'll eat it, but only when there are few other options, or as a matter of courtesy. My kids don't much like it, so it's not a lunchmeat of choice. But hubby grew up eating it fried for breakfast, and he loves it. So, every once in a while, I buy some better quality, all-beef, thick sliced bologna from the deli counter. I fry it up for him and give him an egg and some biscuits, and you'd think I'd brought home a pot of gold. He's just so happy. How can I refuse?
LoCo at 4:10PM on 03/09/08
TWINKIES unless the husband is along OT if he begs me to bring home a box for him. I can't stand them but he thinks they're fab w/strawberries & whipped cream.
AuntJone at 4:37PM on 03/09/08
Instant coffee, for baking recipes that call for it. Graham crackers or Teddy Grahams, when I need them for a crust. Salted butter.
Christina at 4:39PM on 03/09/08
Canned red salmon - ick! But my mother and a group of her friends share a recipe for salmon mousse (I don't know whose it was originally -- I doubt any of them even remember!), and it calls for canned red salmon. The mousse is sooooo delicious, so I'll buy the canned salmon to make it. (We made real salmon mousse in culinary school: poached salmon, heavy cream, etc. -- it wasn't nearly as delicious as my mom's, made with canned salmon, sour cream and jarred horseradish!)
CookiePie at 10:01AM on 03/10/08
@Cookie, please post that mousse recipe if you don't mind. Sounds wonderful (I love horseradish). I keep canned wild Alaskan pink salmon on hand to use as an alternative to tuna salad in the kids' lunches... do you think that would work?
LoCo at 11:02AM on 03/10/08
ditto on the instant coffee! (my mocha cheesecake wouldn't exist without it.) creamy, trans-fat-laden PB (but it's oh-so-good for certain baked goods). bubblegum-y bread (sometimes useful for stuffing, croutons and breadcrumbs). bottled salad dressing (unless i can find a really good one for caesar salad). self-rising flour (unless some british or southern recipe calls for it).
emmab at 11:54AM on 03/10/08
scratch that last comment, since it's easy to make self-rising flour at home!
emmab at 11:58AM on 03/10/08
@LoCo - I don't see why not! I have the recipe at home - will post it tonight.
CookiePie at 12:10PM on 03/10/08
In my world, french's onions exist for the sole purpose of green bean casserole, and bottled light italian dressing is used only for godmother sandwiches, while light ranch dressing is for ranch twice baked or mashed potatoes, never salad. The only bottled dressing I find pleasing in actual salad (or dipping veg) is goddess.
Ravara at 1:25PM on 03/10/08
Kiddie cereals - for stepdaughter or when decorating gingerbread houses
Mac & cheese in a box - for picky stepdaughter; I make mac and cheese from scratch and she eats it. However, when I get sick of making the same old, same old for this picky kid, I just cook a great meal for myself and hubby and toss her some mac n cheese. Thank goodness for Annie's because it's better (and a bit less embarrassing to be seen with) than that Kraft junk.
I hate buying these things because I think that other people will see them in my cart and think I'm a terrible cook or junkfood junkie. I tend to bury them in the cart and place them at the very beginning of the checkout conveyor belt. Get them in the grocery bag before anyone sees!!!
GumbeauxGal at 3:40PM on 03/10/08
Chips Ahoy et al - they're too dry and sweet for my tastes, and homemade is so much better. That said, I have a couple of recipes that use store-bought chocolate chip cookies as crust that just don't taste right when using homemade.
Potato chips - plain potato chips either disappear within hours of reaching home or take months to get eaten, depending on the other half's mood. Thus, I don't buy them unless I need them for a party or the occasional casserole topping.
Instant pudding, unless the longing for artificially flavored butterscotch pudding or granny's banana pudding overtakes. I blame fond childhood memories.
jenilowrance at 5:24PM on 03/10/08
@LoCo - here's my mom's salmon mousse recipe:
2 envelopes plain gelatin
1 red onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup water
1 lb. canned red salmon
3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp. prepared horseradish, or to taste
chopped dill, for garnish
Combine gelatin, onion and water in blender; let stand 10 minutes, then blend 1 to 2 minutes, until well mixed. (I tried this once in the food processor and it didn't work as well as the blender, not sure why.) Add salmon and lemon juice; blend. Add mayo and sour cream; blend. Add horseradish; blend. Pour into a bowl or an oiled mold, cover and refrigerate until firm, at least 5 hours or overnight. Serve with crackers or crudite. (You can also spoon it into a pastry bag and pipe it into endive leaves, celery or cucumber rounds, if you like.) Garnish with chopped dill.
CookiePie at 10:08PM on 03/10/08
This is funny. I actually just did something like this the other day. In honor of "pi day" I planned on baking some pies. An ambitious project, considering I had never baked a pie before, I wanted to do a lemon meringue and a chocolate silk.
For the chocolate silk, I needed whipped cream and I DESPISE whipped cream. I almost cringed when I put it in my cart. And now, the worst part is, the lemon meringue pie took so long, I never even got to the chocolate silk one! Or at least, not in time for Pi Day.
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 11:19AM on 03/14/08