FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
DO YOU PROVIDE NUTRITION INFO FOR YOUR RECIPES?
Though, as a dietitian, I do feel strongly about nutrition, I choose not to provide nutrition information for my recipes. There are several reasons for this. One reason is that there are so many variables regarding ingredients that it’s very difficult to get an accurate count. Another reason is that although calories may be important depending on your situation, but I want the focus of this blog to be on cooking skills and techniques, not on calorie counting. If calorie counting is important to you and your diet, I suggest using an app or tool to calculate your calories. The USDA has a free supertracker and I have also used myfitnesspal with success.
IS EVERYTHING ON THIS BLOG FROM SCRATCH?
Okay, you caught me. While I strive to make most things from scratch, I do occasionally use shortcuts. Most of the time, if I have chosen to use a shortcut it’s because it’s an item that I use so rarely that I can’t get through enough of it to make cooking it from scratch worth it. Some examples are the cracker crumbs in my poppyseed chicken recipe, corn flakes in my funeral potato recipe, and oreo cookies in my white chocolate raspberry cheesecake recipe. I am sure there are others. If you want to be more strict than me and try a homemade substitute, please let me know in the comments, and let me know if you had success! I am sure other readers would love to know.
IS EVERYTHING ON THIS BLOG HEALTHY?
I find healthy to be such a difficult word to define, so I can’t promise that every recipe on this website is “healthy.” I do strive to use mostly whole ingredients which makes substituting and customizing my recipes to meet your dietary needs easy. Here is a little bit more I can tell you about my cooking philosophy:
- I almost always use full fat ingredients, and I use butter over margarines/spreads. There are two reasons for this. One is that low-fat ingredients typically have gums and fillers that their full-fat counterparts don’t have to try to make up for the missing fat in flavor and texture, thus making them a less wholesome alternative. The second reason is that a moderate amount of fat is beneficial for several reasons in the diet. I won’t go into science here, but one of the most important reasons for eating fat is that it helps keep you fuller longer, and helps you to feel more satisfied after you eat helping you to eat less. If you are concerned about calorie content, I suggest using less of the full-fat ingredient rather than substituting a low-fat alternative.
- I do occasionally use white refined sugar, and don’t typically use sugar substitutes. Like most of the world, I do try to keep my sugar intake to a minimum (it’s a constant battle), but I do believe in the occasional indulgence. I choose not to use sugar substitutes because sugar typically plays an important role in the science of cooking and baking, and I don’t want to mess with that fine balance. Again, like fats, sugar substitutes may contain unwanted ingredients and have unwanted effects. If you do want to use something less processed, unrefined cane sugar is a perfectly acceptable substitute in all of my recipes. You may also try any other substitute that you prefer, but I can’t make any promises that the recipe will turn out. If you do have success, please leave a comment so that other readers can benefit!
- I usually stick to fairly healthy cooking methods (baking, roasting, sauteing in olive oil, steaming, slow-cooking, etc…) but I do occasionally fry or deep-fry a recipe if I find it necessary for the finished product to turn out as desired. Keep in mind, that if I do fry something, that recipe would be considered more of a treat in our house, not something that I would add to our weekly menu plan.
MY RECIPE DIDN’T TURN OUT, WHAT WENT WRONG?
First off, SORRY! Working hard on a recipe only to have it fail is never fun. I’ve certainly done it my share of times too. First, let me say, that every recipe on this website has been tested multiple times by myself, and I don’t post anything that I don’t think is totally stellar. Having said that, everybody’s tastes are different, and I know that not every recipe is for everyone. There are also many factors that go into play regarding the success of a recipe including oven variation, altitude differences, ingredient quality and/or age, etc…If a recipe doesn’t work out for you please leave a polite comment on the post and I will try to help you troubleshoot what went wrong. This way, if others have the same problem they can see what we discovered and hopefully avoid the mistake next time.
I LOVED THIS RECIPE, CAN I SHARE IT?
I am so glad you loved the recipe, and YES, I create my recipes to be shared. I do ask that you follow a few simple guidelines when sharing my recipes.
- Link back to the recipe. If you are sharing a recipe online or via social media, please don’t include the entire recipe, please direct those you are sharing with directly to the post on my website. That ensures that I get proper credit, and that they can see all of my other recipes just in case something tickles their taste buds. The social sharing buttons on this site make this easy!
- Credit me as the author. If sharing a recipe on facebook, instagram, or twitter please tag my page (@callmebettyblog). That way, I can see your post (I love to see my recipes in use) and other people can see where you got your inspiration.
- Take your own photos, write the recipe in your own words, and link to my recipe. If you are a blogger, and you want to write about my recipe on your blog, first off, thank you, I am flattered. I would love it if you wrote about one of my recipes on your blog. I do ask that if you make the recipe, that you take your own photos rather than taking credit for the ones on my site. I also ask you to write the recipe in your words. Your readers are on your site for your voice, and your knowledge, not mine! A link back to my blog where you got your inspiration is also appropriate. If you do want to include my recipe in a round-up style post, you are welcome to use one photo as long as you credit me and link back to my website.
IF WE SEND YOU A FREE PRODUCT, WILL YOU POST ABOUT IT ON YOUR BLOG?
I am very selective about the products I choose to promote on Call Me Betty as I want my readers to trust and respect what I have to say. If you feel like your company would be a good fit, please send me an email at amanda@callmebetty.com and we can discuss my rates for a sponsored post. I do not currently accept free product as a form of compensation.