The Perfect Pantry®

Baking powder (Recipe: blue corn muffins)

From the archives, a favorite post, updated with a new recipe, photos and links.

If baking powder were an opera, the libretto might read:

Act I: Poor little BP lives a quiet life on a cool, dark shelf. Enter The Baker, who introduces BP to Wet. Bubbles appear.

Act II: The Baker, sensing something dramatic might be happening, then introduces BP and Wet to Heat, and kaboom! Bubbles appear again. The Baker encourages BP, Wet and Heat to travel together to Muffin Land, and they have adventures along the way.

Act III: Out of the oven the Baker pulls beautiful muffins, all puffed up and proud, thanks to BP's double-bubble action.

And they all live happily ever after.

Actually, except for The Baker, they all get eaten in the end...which, of course, is a happy ending for us.

Miracle Whip (Recipe: chipotle chicken sandwich)

Today I stand before you, unapologetic and unashamed, confessing, as I do every summer, my love for Miracle Whip®, the salad dressing that cannot, by law, be called mayonnaise.

What can I say in my defense?

Red pepper flakes (Recipe: Laotian chicken and herb salad)

REVELATION: Did you know you can make your own red pepper flakes?

Have you ever thought of doing it?

When it comes to peppers, the labels "mild" and "hot" don't really mean much. Is "mild" a NuMexico Naky (500 Scoville Units) or a NuMexico Big Jim (5,000)? And is "hot" a Tabasco (30,000) or a Thai (100,000)?

Why not create your own blend, mild or hot, smoky or not? You don't even need to use red peppers.

All you need are dried peppers, an oven, a rolling pin, and patience.

Other People's Pantries #78

From Dawn, in Tucson, Arizona:

I just discovered your post and thought I'd share my pantry. Certainly an eyesore for most, but I'm the one who lives with it, and so...it works great for me!