Substitutions and Pumpkin Carving

October 28, 2010

When I moved to Ireland I didn't think too much about the move. In retrospect, it's weird that I didn't anticipate all of the things that would be so different.

In my baking, it was clear from week one that I would have to find alternatives to some of the staples.

One of the biggest problems I faced right away was that you can't get chocolate chips in Ireland. Well, that's not quite true. They sell chocolate chips in teeny tiny packets at a price that doesn't make it worth it to ever use them for baking.

So I picked up a package of Wonderbar at Tesco, in the dark chocolate flavor. I'm certain it's actual chocolate, somehow, but it does not have the same effect if you pop a square in your mouth. Which is probably making me a healthier person, somehow.

But for chocolate chip cookies or muffins, it works great. I chop it into chunks and use it as a substitute for anything that doesn't involve melting the chocolate chips.

The other missing ingredient on Irish shelves (well, at least for this post), is canned pumpkin. I never used canned pumpkin too much in America, but I've been on a pumpkin kick lately, so I've been improvising.


Instead of pumpkin, I use butternut squash, chopped in half, roasted, and spooned out of the shells. It works great, and I'm told it's even better than using roasted pumpkin because it tends to be watery.

When the flavoring is pumpkin-y, with cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger, it all seems to work out to a cosy fall flavor no matter what!

And speaking of pumpkins, we have two just waiting to be carved.

What do you think of these options? I really like the last one, but I don't have gray pumpkins or the patience!









Hope you all have a lovely weekend and a spooky Halloween!

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