The simple answer is no. The not-so-simple answer is “sometimes”.  As a huge foodie and just a lover of knowledge, I have a ton of “how-to”, “why is this?”, and “can you…?” answers floating around in my brain. I don’t use it on a daily basis, but sometimes it just spews right out of my mouth (or my fingers in some cases).  Take the shopping trip to my local Sprouts Farmers Market store yesterday. My sister is visiting from Arizona and she’s never been to her own local store. We made a quick trip for chicken, coffee and yogurt.  Needless to say, we left with a cart full of food.

As we wandered around the store checking out products and prices, we started talking about healthy recipes. Pesto came up as a flavorful option, but my sister complained about the cost of pine nuts. I recommended she try walnuts instead. I explained that although pine nuts were traditional, you could swap ingredients to come up with something you like just as much. The thought of substituting ingredients never crossed her mind. So, my brain started spewing. Although basil is traditional, you can use many things to twist the flavor around. Parsley and arugula are good substitutes for basil. You can easily add sun dried tomatoes to give it some tang, or use avocado oil instead of olive oil for some added richness. Personally, I can never go without the garlic.

I always look at a recipe as a guideline with general suggestions, instead of absolute unchangeable law. The only time I really stick to a recipe is when I’m baking, and even then I’ll throw in a twist or two. So, in that vein, I share with you a great infographic from Shape Magazine. It’s a few years old, but still as good as the day they published it.

hummus_shape_mag

Source: Shape Magazine