Shrinking Product Size - Article.

Jake&IzzyLand said:

Also, can they make granola bars any slimmer?? There will soon be nothing left. I no longer buy them for school snacks. I make my own or mix up my own snack mix.

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So true! I love how Quaker has the "Big" chewy bars. 5 in a box compared to 8 regular size. Um yeah, that's the size that they used to be!

[QUOTE="Maybe have your student make their own premixes? It's a great trick I do in my house, take a day of the month and just make a bunch of mixes ahead of time. Cookie mixes, cake mixes, spice mixes, instant oatmeal mixes, muffin mixes, etc. At Christmas time I make about 8-10 different kinds of cookies and bake them all in one weekend, fill tins up with them and give them out as gifts. I would never be able to get it done if I didn't prep the mixes the week before. I put it in ziplock bags and label the mix and add short hand instructions.[/QUOTE]
I do teach a class in making you own mixes. I haven't bought store bought mixes, other than to demonstrate in class, in eons.

However, sometimes, finding a suitable make-your-own-mix version is a challenge. There is one dessert recipe that calls for 1 16 oz. box of devil's food cake mix. I haven't found a suitable make-your-own-mix version yet. Do you have one?

One of the canned beans we use in a couple of recipes (brand name - there is no store brand in our area for this one) just went from 14.5 oz to 10.5 oz.

YoYoAurora said:

However, sometimes, finding a suitable make-your-own-mix version is a challenge. There is one dessert recipe that calls for 1 16 oz. box of devil's food cake mix. I haven't found a suitable make-your-own-mix version yet. Do you have one?

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Most of my recipes are frankensteins. I look up on google for example: yellow cake recipe. I look at 4-7 of the highest rated recipes from different sources and blogs and write my own. Then I test it out and adjust from there. Once I'm happy with the product I have a recipe I can go back to again and again. A great blog for baking that I follow is : http://korenainthekitchen.com/ She has some great Christmas cookie recipes! Though her puff swans fell flat for me :/ I think I need my sister to help me with that one to tell me where I went wrong.

For my switch on TP, I get the bulk Members Mark as SAMs Club. A roll last twice as long, a lot less below the Charmin price. For the cake mixes I doctor them up; adding an extra cup of flour, or cake flour, along with 1/4 cup applesauce. Often I add some choc chips, diced up maraschino cherry so, or instead of Applesauce, crushed pineapple.

Another pet peeve, a pound of coffee is about 10-12 oz,

usnuzuloose said:

I did make a cake once with the downsizing package and boy I could tell the difference when filling a pan. It was not the same.

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Yes, the cakes don't puff up as much as there is less batter filling the pan.

YoYoAurora said:

To my students' dismay, I'm having to switch out some recipes because of the shrinking package sizes. I'm moving to cooking from scratch recipes, which can take longer and require more ingredients for the same recipe. Most of my students are looking for quick, easy and delicious. For the most part, they don't care if they're opening a package, a can or a jar. They're home cooks, not chefs in training.

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Your class wouldn't work for me anymore. I'd rather have the quick convenience of opening a second package (and be taught in class to read package size labels carefully to get that second box of something if necessary,) than have to buy several more ingredients to make something from scratch. I don't need 5 opened, partially used packages of products to make something from scratch when I could have used 1 + 1/2 convenience products to make something similar. I get that scratch tastes better, but I don't always have the time or want to put in the effort to measure out 5 more ingredients.

YoYoAurora said:

Maybe have your student make their own premixes? It's a great trick I do in my house said:

Most of my recipes are frankensteins. I look up on google for example: yellow cake recipe. I look at 4-7 of the highest rated recipes from different sources and blogs and write my own. Then I test it out and adjust from there. Once I'm happy with the product I have a recipe I can go back to again and again. A great blog for baking that I follow is : http://korenainthekitchen.com/ She has some great Christmas cookie recipes! Though her puff swans fell flat for me :/ I think I need my sister to help me with that one to tell me where I went wrong.

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I would love to know the recipes for the make your own mixes you both do. I've started making my own pancakes and regular cakes rather than buying boxed mixes since I know what goes in it and it's cheaper. I like my pancake mix but am struggling to find cake mixes I like. I haven't tried brownies yet, that's next on the list.

Carrot cake (a favorite of mine, I think this is from King Author's site):

1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) vegetable oil
2 cups (14 ounces) sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups (8 1/2 ounces) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3 cups (11 1/2 ounces) finely grated carrots (I use a food processor)
1 1/2 cups (5 3/4 ounces) chopped walnuts

Cream Cheese Frosting (I find homemade frosting always needs adjusting, no batch is the same)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
one 8-ounce package cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups (10 to 14 ounces) glazing sugar or confectioners' sugar
add milk or cream 1 tablespoon at a time to adjust consistency of frosting, if necessary

Cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two 9-inch round layer pans, or one 9 x 13-inch pan. (325 for dark or glass pans)

Beat together the oil, sugar,salt, eggs and spices. Mix the flour with the baking soda, and stir in. Add the carrots and nuts, and mix until just blended.

Pour the prepared pan(s). Bake the cake(s) for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the cake tests done. Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting it. (If you're using two 9-inch round pans, remove the cake from the pans after about 15 minutes, and place it in a rack to cool.

Frosting: Beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the salt and vanilla. Beat in the sugar. Add a tablespoon of milk or cream if the frosting is too stiff to spread; add additional sugar if it's too thin.

Waiting on my sis to text me her yellow chiffon cake and opera cake recipe that I usually use, I also have a fantastic muffin recipe called morning glory if you're interested

davper said:

What bothers me about downsizing product, is the packaging doesn't change size. I would rather pay more for the same amount then pay a hair less for much less. When the packaging doesn't change size, a greater percent of what you pay in total is for packaging.

Then you have the issue that the size you had once gotten was the perfect size for your need. Perfect example for me is Tuna Fish in the foil packet. A 6oz package was perfect for my wife and I. Now the package is 5 oz and we have to have less protein with our carbs or waste money by buying a second package just to have the same amount and risk have the remainder go to waste.

I get it, prices go up. I am not stupid. Raise the price as needed without trying to pull a fast one.

Here is another fast one that food comapnies have pulled, Ice Cream. Forget that you can't buy a half gallon of ice cream any more. But in many cases, you don't get ice cream. Take a close look at the packaging. Most say Frozen Desert.

What is the difference you ask? Frozen Dessert is made with oils as opposed to milk and butter fat.

Look at the Breyer's label. They used to promote all natural ingredient's. It no longer says Breyer's All Natural on the packaging.

Sorry for my tirade.

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don't need to apologize to me Davper,
I absolutely refuse to buy Breyer's anymore. remember the old commercials where the kids could read the label and pronounce everything that was in their ice cream. lol lets see them film that again.

I refuse to buy frozen dairy dessert.
Oh and breyers swears that the consumer prefers that. they say it is in response to consumers wanting a better "mouth feel" bull

YoYoAurora said:

To my students' dismay, I'm having to switch out some recipes because of the shrinking package sizes. I'm moving to cooking from scratch recipes, which can take longer and require more ingredients for the same recipe. Most of my students are looking for quick, easy and delicious. For the most part, they don't care if they're opening a package, a can or a jar. They're home cooks, not chefs in training.

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You know something YoYo, I've moved almost all scratch recipes. Tell your students don't get discouraged. Now thanks to the internet there are gazillions of sites, blogs etc that have tons of easy recipes.

Yesterday I made some sticky buns that was ridiculously easy. King arthur recipe and a bread machine for making the dough. LOL the time for the dough to rise was waaay longer than the time I spent on prep.

Some one mentioned pancakes. Heck, I haven't use a pancake mix in years, nor cornbread nor cakes. all these things are super easy and fast to whip up.

I'm seeing my sis tomorrow and will get her cake recipes then, if you want a great cookie recipe though Ghirardelli's can't be beat