The best raisin substitutes are dried currants, dried cranberries, dried cherries, prunes, sates, dried apricot, and dried pineapple. All of these can be finely minced to reduce them to raisin size, and will offer an interesting twist on the usual flavor.
What can you substitute for raisins in a recipe?
Using Dried Fruit
Other dried fruit such as pitted, chopped dates, prunes, or dried cranberries can be substituted measure-for-measure for raisins.
What fruit is similar to raisins?
Popular dried fruits include raisins, dates, prunes (dried plums), figs, apricots and peaches. Fruits such as dried mango, pineapple and berries are also available, but these tend to be dried with added sugar.
What is a substitute for golden raisins?
The 5 Best Substitutes for Raisins
- 1 – Dried Currants.
- 2 – Dried Sweetened Cranberries.
- 3 – Dried Cherries.
- 4 – Dates, Pitted, and Minced.
- 5 – Prunes, Minced.
Can I substitute dried cherries for dried cranberries?
Tart dried cherries are a great substitute for dried cranberries. They are tart but not too tart making them a perfect balance for sweet desserts and baked goods. You can use dried cherries in any of your favorite recipes that call for cranberries.
What can I substitute for raisins in carrot cake?
Raisins and pecans: Substitute 1 ½ cups of any of your preferred mix-ins such as golden raisins, currants, extra carrot, orange zest, dried cranberries, shredded coconut, walnuts, or toasted cashews.
Should you soak dried fruit before baking?
If you plan to cook or bake with dried fruit, soaking it first will keep it plump and moist. It also prevents the fruit from absorbing excess liquid from the recipe. It’s a small step, but one that can make a real difference in the final quality of the dish.
Can I use dried cranberries instead of raisins?
Dried cranberries can be used to make nearly anything that calls for the use of raisins. Although they are slightly more tart than raisins, they are often sold sweetened and won’t drastically alter the taste of the recipe.
Can I substitute dates for raisins?
If you are going to substitute raw dates for raisins in baking recipes, like in muffins, brownies, and Lara bars, you’ll want to soak the raisins for about 2-3 minutes in hot water. Soaking the raisins for about 3 minutes will reconstitute some of the moisture and give them a similar texture to dates.
What is the most popular dried fruit?
Raisins
Raisins are the most common type, followed by dates, prunes, figs and apricots. Other varieties of dried fruit are also available, sometimes in candied form (sugar coated). These include mangoes, pineapples, cranberries, bananas and apples.
What are the best raisins for baking?
But, when it comes to cooking with raisins—as opposed to baking or snacking—there is no choice. No competition. You should only use golden raisins, as far as we’re concerned. (And, to really make sure they’re plump and flavorful, soak them in a nice vinegar before adding them to a recipe.)
Why should we soak raisins before eating?
Raisins are loaded with fibre. Hence, they act as natural laxatives when you soak them in water. Thus, eating soaked raisins can help in constipation and regulating the bowel movements. This will result in a better digestive system.
Should you refrigerate raisins?
The best way to keep raisins from drying out and clumping is to put them in an airtight container or a large, plastic, sealable bag. Once opened, if you don’t plan to use the raisins within a couple of months, you may want to store them in the refrigerator in order to give them a longer shelf life.
Which is healthier dried cranberries or dried cherries?
Summary. Cherry is richer in minerals, contains 19 times more Vitamin A, seven times more Folate, and has a lower GI than cranberry. Cranberries have 17 times more Vitamin A, two times more Vitamin K, and contain low sugar and sodium than cherry.
What is dried cherries good for?
Like most fruits, dried cherries are good for helping you reach your daily recommended values of vitamins and minerals. They are an especially abundant source of vitamin A — more specifically, provitamin A, the most common variety of which is beta-carotene.
What can I use instead of dried cherries?
Prunus fruits like plums, apricots, nectarines
If cherries or sour cherries are off the list, try their cousins.
Why do they put raisins in carrot cake?
Sometimes nuts such as walnuts or pecans are added into the cake batter, as well as spices such as cinnamon, ginger and ground mixed spice. Fruit including pineapple, raisins and shredded coconut can also be used to add a natural sweetness.
Why is my carrot cake so dense?
The batter has the active chemicals throughout, and will form bubbles and expand. The chunks contain no bubbles, and just sit there. So with the same amount of cake, you get less bubbles, and hence less lift for the same amount of batter, leading to a dense texture.
Why is my carrot cake too moist?
Keep the extra nuts and, god forbid, coconut out of things, and definitely don’t add pineapple—it’ll make the batter too moist. Carrot cake is oil-based, rather than butter-based.
How do you rehydrate dried cherries?
Reconstituting Dried Cherries
For every 2 cups of dried cherries (any variety) use 1 cup of water. Combine water and cherries into a saucepan. Bring your water to a boil, then turn the heat to a simmer. Let cherries simmer (stirring constantly) for 10 to 15 minutes (or until plump).
How long can you leave dried fruit to soak?
How long should you soak your fruit? People soak their fruit for a year (like myself) but the point is to ensure the fruit has enough time to soak up all those juices. So you can soak them even for a month, 15 days, 5 days or even the night before you bake.