My mom convinced me to ditch fresh buttermilk for this $15 powdered alternative — and so will you

People who love to bake know that having a well stocked pantry is essential for when the mood strikes. It doesn't matter whether one intends to make cookies or scones, home bakers are likely to have a supply of essentials like chocolate chips, frozen berries, fancy vanilla bean paste, and a surplus of white, brown and confectioner's sugars all within arm's reach for their next bake. Even perishable baking essentials like milk, butter and eggs are usually in healthy supply at any given moment for most home cooks.

But there's one very common baking ingredient that's impossible for bakers to have on hand for their impulse creations, and that's buttermilk. Buttermilk is a cultured milk or fermented dairy product made from the leftover liquid that's produced after churning cream into butter, therefore its shelf life is relatively short.

It's also impossible to find the very small quantities of buttermilk needed for common recipes like buttermilk pancakes, buttermilk fried chicken, homemade ranch and buttermilk biscuits. Most recipes call for less than one cup of the flavor agent, but that means you end up with much more buttermilk than you need and are often forced to toss the rest when you inevitably don't use it. It's a wasteful cycle that nobody feels good about.

Hoosier Hill Farm

Hoosier Hill Farm Buttermilk Powder

$15

There are two ways to use this buttermilk powder: For liquid buttermilk, use 1 tablespoon of powder per 1/4 cup of water. When baking, add the powdered buttermilk with the rest of the dry ingredients and then add the appropriate amount of water when the recipe calls for buttermilk.

$15 at Amazon

That's why my mom let me in on her secret: She gave up real buttermilk years ago for a powered alternative that she swears is just as good, and I have to agree with her. Yep, she keeps her buttermilk in the cabinet, reaching for it only when a recipe calls for that tangy punch that only buttermilk can provide.

I eventually purchased a tin of it for myself and I don't know how I lived without it. As a person who loves to bake, I pride myself on having a pantry with almost everything I need to make staple baked goods on a whim. With this powered buttermilk alternative I can now add so many more recipes into the rotation, like my new favorite this Berry Buttermilk Cake recipe from New York Times Cooking that calls for a bag of frozen berries and Smitten Kitchen's Buttermilk Biscuits which are delicious with a healthy lashing of plum compote in the spring.

The buttermilk powder provides that lightly tangy, slightly tart punch that you would get from fresh buttermilk. There are two ways to use it. For liquid buttermilk for use in things like ranch, blue cheese dressing and buttermilk brining, simply use 1 tablespoon of powder per 1/4 cup of water. When baking, add the powdered buttermilk with the rest of the dry ingredients and then add the appropriate amount of water when the recipe calls for buttermilk. It's genuinely that easy.

Apparently my mom and I are not the only ones dishing on our secret, either. More than 10,000 Amazon reviewers have given this buttermilk alternative a 4.6-star rating on Amazon — with more than 2,000 people purchasing it in the last month alone.

"For years I have purchased fresh buttermilk to make a recipe and end up tossing the leftover buttermilk. With this product I make what I need and the unused powder stays ready for the next time," said another reviewer. "It will forever be a staple in my pantry!"

"This is such a convenience to have around and use in baking where buttermilk is needed," said another reviewer. "I never have fresh buttermilk on hand when I need it."

If you've ever found yourself rushing to the store for a cart of buttermilk for baking, this might be the answer you've been looking for.

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