Thousand Island Dressing and Worcestershire Sauce DIY

While doing the weekly grocery shopping one day, I happened upon a loaf of rye bread on the discount bakery shelves, definitely a rare event.  I had to pick it up because my husband absolutely loves patty melts, and apparently the only proper way to make them is with rye bread.  I thought I was being such a good wife.

On the weekend, my dear husband started happily forming the patties for the sandwiches and getting the griddle going.  And then he wanted to know where the Thousand Island dressing was.

Gulp.

Because, you know, no one would ever consider making patty melts for dinner without Thousand Island dressing.  My life was flashing before my eyes.  Or it would have been if I didn’t have the internet to save me.

Three minutes later, I was whipping up the dressing. 

Thousand Island Dressing

½ cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons ketchup

2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Combine all ingredients in a small container.  Chill at least 1 hour before serving.

Someday we may not have the internet to save us, so we’ve got to have these recipes available in hard copy.  And even if the internet doesn’t go down, the situation in stores is getting a little spooky.  I haven’t yet seen shortages of salad dressings, but I feel it’s only a matter of time.  We’ve got to be prepared to make our own.

As it sometimes happens when I am making a recipe, I happen to be out of an ingredient.  It happened just last night when I was making hamburger helper for dinner, and I needed some SOS Mix.  So I had to stop making dinner and make the SOS Mix, then go back to making dinner.  

When I'm in the kitchen, it's sometimes like the children's book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.  I think it went something like "If you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass a milk."  Then he'll need a napkin.  Then the milk spills. And the adventure goes on.   

In the kitchen I might have to mix up a few things before I finally make what I set out to do.  And if you happen to be making Thousand Island dressing from scratch, you might also need to make the mayo, ketchup, or Worcestershire sauce.  Right?

And so you ask, “Well, what about the mayonnaise?”

We’ve already covered that.  Click here.  Super easy to do, if we have electricity to run a blender or food processor.  I think our grandmothers must have made mayo without electricity, but I haven’t yet done it.  I gave up after trying to beat by hand for 10 minutes.

And then you ask, “What about the ketchup?”

Yep, we’ve covered that, too.  Click here.

“Pickle relish?”  Nope. Haven’t covered that, yet.  My cucumbers were a complete bust in 2021, and in 2020 we moved, so I didn’t get to harvest any from that garden.  Hopefully 2022 will be a better year for cucumbers in the garden and pickle relish in the jars.

“And the Worcestershire sauce?”  Naturally, we couldn’t make Thousand Island dressing without it.  (Well, actually, we could and have.  It's an easier, faster recipe.  But we also need Worcestershire sauce at times.)

Worcestershire Sauce

½ cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon brown sugar

¼ teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon ginger

¼ teaspoon onion powder

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Cool and store in the refrigerator.

 

Links to related posts:

Simple Salad Dressings

Ketchup   

Mayonnaise  

Hamburgers 

Pickles  

Hamburger Buns

Veggie Burgers  

French Fries 

Natural Solutions for Preventing Mold in Homemade Bread

Those of us who make our own bread—and that’s going to be all of us sometime in the future—face not only the challenge of making a nice, light loaf, but also just as a great a challenge in preventing that loaf from molding before we finish eating it.  According to the Taste of Home Test Kitchen, most homemade bread will start to mold or stale within 3-5 days.[1]  Yipes!  I think I’d go crazy if I had to make bread more than once a week.  I don’t think I’ve ever had bread start to mold in five days or less, but that’s because I use some preservatives.  Actually, most people use at least one or two when making their loaves without even realizing it.  Let’s take a look at some of the natural preservatives that will help your loaves last longer.

Dough enhancer or conditioner.  These are generally touted for improving the rise and texture of homemade bread.  Making the bread last longer is a side benefit.[2]  Of course, there are numerous commercial dough enhancer products on the market, but you can make your own so easily and economically.  Links are provided below for a couple of different dough enhancer recipes that have appeared on the blog.

Individual Ingredients

Add an acid to your recipe.  You’ve got several options:

• Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, promotes the growth of yeast in the dough, making the bread texture finer and fluffier.  You can crush a vitamin C tablet or use Fruit Fresh.  (You might find it in the canning aisle—never know with current supply chain issues.)  Add 1/8 teaspoon per loaf of bread.[3] [4]
• Buttermilk is quite acidic.  To use buttermilk, replace ½ cup of the liquid in the recipe with buttermilk.[5]
• Citric acid is a popular choice for sour dough breads—better for sour doughs, but again, it all depends on the amount you are adding[6].  Ascorbic acid and citric acid are both found in citrus fruits, but they are not the same and they are definitely not interchangeable.[7] 
• Lemon juice or vinegar will also work.  Add 1 tablespoon for every 4-5 cups of water.
• Whey that you have drained from making yogurt or cheese is an excellent choice for acidifying bread.  Simply substitute it measure for measure for the water. [8] 

Other ingredients

• Use honey instead of sugar as the sweetening agent.
• Use whole grains like whole wheat and oats instead of white flour.

Additives

• Ginger, powdered, add ¼ teaspoon per loaf.  Don’t worry, you this small amount won’t affect the flavor of the bread.[9]
• Lecithin, made from soy or egg yolks, add 1 tablespoon per cup of flour.[10]
• Whey, dry powder, add 1 teaspoon per cup of flour.[11]

Processes

• Longer rise.  Try using less yeast, about ¼ of what the recipe calls for, and allowing for a much longer first rise period.
• Sourdough.  You can also use a sourdough starter instead of commercial yeast.
• Thorough baking.  Finally, make sure the loaves are completely baked before removing them from the oven.  Underbaked bread has excess moisture in it and is an ideal medium for growing mold.  Use an instant-read thermometer to gauge when your bread is baked.  Most loaves are fully baked when the internal temperature reaches 190°F.  Breads with a lot of butter, eggs, or milk may need to reach 200°F before they are done.  Keep in mind that it is far better to overbake bread than to underbake it.  If in doubt, leave it in the oven an additional five minutes.

I regularly use my own dough enhancer in my homemade whole wheat sandwich bread, so I’ve got several of the natural additives there, plus I use whole wheat, oats, and honey.  My bread will generally last about seven days—a little longer in winter, a little less in summer. 

Links to related posts:

More Dough Enhancers for Lighter, Softer Bread 

Homemade buttermilk

Whole wheat sandwich bread 

Don’t Let the Bread Waste!

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[1]https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/how-to-store-bread-so-it-stays-fresh/

[2] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[3] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[4] https://blog.thenibble.com/2011/10/14/food-101-the-difference-between-ascorbic-acid-citric-acid/

[5] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[6] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[7] https://blog.thenibble.com/2011/10/14/food-101-the-difference-between-ascorbic-acid-citric-acid/

[8] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[9] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[10] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php

[11] http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/tips/dough-enhancers-and-how-to-use-them.php