My First Craving?

I also thought about titling this post "How I Discover the Holes in My Pantry." When movers pack you up, there are certain things they won't take, like open bottles of liquid. That might be why I don't have any mint flavoring right now. You also tend to take a look at a box or something that's three-quarters empty and think, "Why should they pack this up? Baking soda is cheap--I'll just get a new box when we get there..." Of course, it helps if you remember to do that when you're shopping, rather than waiting until you're absolutely dying for some cookies. Chocolate chip was out, since I haven't replaced those yet. So I went with molasses crinkles (I seem to get new cravings every time I talk with my family), only to discover that there isn't an easy replacement for baking soda. In case you are wondering, baking soda is the common name for sodium bicarbonate. You may think, "Baking soda, baking powder...what's the difference?" Well, the difference is slight but important. Baking powder is made up of baking soda plus some other ingredients--typically an acid and something like cornstarch to keep it from clumping. You can replace baking powder with baking soda if you add acid to your recipe (like using buttermilk instead of milk). It's harder to take the acid out of recipe--in molasses crinkles, the acid comes from the molasses--so baking powder is not a good replacement for baking soda. Suffice to say, I made a quick trip to the store...but it was worth it.