So I found a recipe for twinkies which I can no longer find, no matter how I fucking search for it here or using google. It calls for 3% whipped cream but it's a flavor I do not have and I'm unable to order for a while. A few days ago I also was curious about the difference between TFA's and Capella's Vanilla Cupcake, and somewhere around here I read that a substitution guide would be very helpful. So instead of asking for a replacement again, maybe it's time for a megathread.
What I propose is that you post substitutions that work well in your experience (or that maybe improve on a recipe), and I can later help with the formatting to make it useful for everyone. Interested?
This was my response to a similar suggestion 5 days ago:
>IMO the number of flavors I've tried from one manufacturer that taste exactly like a flavor from a different source is "zero". Since the OP mentioned Strawberry, I have 8 different ones and they are indeed all different. You want to hit the extreme, compare banana flavors - nothing's even remotely close to another.
>On top of flavor, you have potency. Even when the flavors are similar in profile, one brand might taste the same at 5% as another does at 1%. No swapping there...
>So, then we have the difficulty of "close substitutes". Who can define close? I've made a number of recipes off this sub where I subbed one flavor I owned for another one I didn't. IMO I did not make the original recipe, and I can't judge the merits of the original recipe based on what I made. THere is just no reliable way to tell how close my substitute ingredient matches both the flavor and potency of the OP's ingredient. I've made a number of batches of "my version" of Oreo's Vanilla Custard, but I have never made Oreo's vanilla custard because I have a metric shit-ton of TFA French Vanilla which I use in place of the recipe's CAP French Vanilla. I don't know how different it would taste with the CAP because I like the version I make. Is TFA's FV a close sub for CAP's? It's only .5% of the recipe - can it make that big a difference? We can assume they aren't too far off, but that is just an assumption. I might like the original version more or less than the version I make, but until I've tried it it is speculation.
>Bottom line: there is no substitution database to be made. If you make a recipe with anything other than the OP's ingredients, you are using an idea, not a recipe. This is fine BTW, just don't get upset if your version doesn't turn out to be what you expected.
Yeah, this is my thought as well. Maybe you can sub out CAP Strawberry Sweet for TFA Strawverry... But that will totally change the way the juice tastes so I really don't think it can be compared properly. That doesn't mean that the end product won't be good...just different.
There has been talk of this before, but simply put - it would be far to complicated, and most flavoring have their own special characteristics and flavors that generally cannot be substituted.
I hear ya! Wouldn't it still be possible to create a resource from the flavorings which can be subbed, even if it's not a huge list? Even knowing which flavorings you definitely cannot sub because they have X and Y properties would be useful, in my opinion.
Once again, far too much work for something that people will ultimately ignore. Much like everything in the sidebar.
As a new DIY-er I would love this. I'm still filling out the arsenal of flavors so I don't have duplicates of any flavors. If I already have CAP sweet mango I'm not going to buy a TFA mango unless there's a significant difference
There's usually pretty big differences between all manufacturers' concentrates. Even something as basic as Sweet Cream is much different.
That said, most Banana flavorings are pretty damn similar. FW version is probably the best since its weaker and easier to work with
I would use it. I've been DIYing for almost a year so I have tons of flavors. And then there will be a recipe that calls for an obscure brand of something I don't have. I may have 6 other brands but not that exact one.
Or, I would love to know how to use my medicine flower and flavorah in place of other flavors, just so they will get some use.
I think it's a great idea! If she is willing to format it all up.