Transforming Recipes

Have you ever wondered how home ecs and foodies create new recipes? Sometimes they deliberately work to make a recipe significantly different from another, and sometimes necessity really is the mother of invention. A recipe is considered new if there are three significant changes; for example, high fat modified to be low fat, bundt cake instead of a sheet cake, lemon instead of chocolate.

For instance, here is a recipe that I created from an old favorite. Seven Layer Salad is a recipe I have loved for years. I was planning to make it and discovered that the spinach I bought just looked terrible - all wilted and wet. So I left out the spinach, removed the bacon, added more cabbage, added cooked chicken and peas, and created a mixed pasta salad instead of a layered salad. Viola! Cabbage Tortellini Salad was born.

So are those three significant changes? The shape and appearance of the salad changed, I omitted two major ingredients, fiddled with the dressing proportions, and added chicken and peas. Here's the true test: if you placed those salads side by side, would you think they were two different salads?

I think this new recipe passes the test. Try them both and see for yourself!