Bakers' Pantry

If there is one thing I know how to do it's bake. I learned to bake before I could cook and I have a diploma from Le Cordon Bleu in Patisserie and Baking. So I have bantered with the idea of not buying any prepackaged mixes for a while now. Silly, though, I will still keep cornbread mixes and brownie mixes in my pantry - but why?

Today when I stopped at the market, I looked at the brownie boxes for a while. What really is in a brownie? By the way, I am sure the Pentagon knows. But, really, what staples should I be keeping to make a batch of brownies? That's the type of thing I would want to whip up in a few minutes if I decided to make them.

*butter
*unsweetened chocolate
*eggs
*sugar
*vanilla
*flour
*nuts

All of the ingredients in brownies are staples in the pantry - very basic ingredients. Why buy a mix??? Is it supposedly easier to buy a mix? Or can you set up your kitchen so that it's easy to get to your ingredients in the pantry? Yes. And memorize what is in a brownie. Um, yes. Or know what you need for your favorite baked items - like chocolate chip cookies, pound cake, peanut butter cookies. No need to buy the mix, buy the main ingredient and keep it on hand with the rest of your pantry items.

Bakers Pantry List
**flour
**sugar
**baking powder
**baking soda
**brown sugar
**vanilla extract
**cocoa powder (unsweetened)
**unsweetened chocolate
**brown sugar
**chocolate chips
**nuts
**peanut butter
**powdered sugar

With these ingredients on hand it's easy to make just about anything you are in the mood for. My son loves madeleines and plain vanilla pound cake and I have always made them from scratch. Eggs and butter are the most common things to have on hand, add them to anything on this list and there you have it. Other items you may want are cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut, cream of tartar, ground ginger and various extracts like almond and lemon. Without all those premade boxes there's more room in the cupboard, too!
Happy baking!