First off, this is my first post on this board, and I would like to say "hello" to everyone.
Alright, now that introductions are over, I live in China now and in my attempts at learning as many new things as possible, I've run into a problem. I've attempted to start baking here and I've hit a brick wall. You simply cannot find some ingredients here, even at "western import" supermarkets. Things such as vanilla extract, real maple syrup, and powdered sugar continue to elude me. I did however find Gold Medal flour which was a plus I guess.
Anyway here is my question: I managed to make Lemon Squares using normal sugar instead of powdered sugar, and they turned out "alright". However, the same was not true for Russian Tea Cakes, as I attempted to substitute Country Kitchen pancake syrup for vanilla extract. :/ Below is the recipe. Is there anything I can do to make these tea cakes actually taste good without having access to either vanilla or powdered sugar? TIA.
Alright, now that introductions are over, I live in China now and in my attempts at learning as many new things as possible, I've run into a problem. I've attempted to start baking here and I've hit a brick wall. You simply cannot find some ingredients here, even at "western import" supermarkets. Things such as vanilla extract, real maple syrup, and powdered sugar continue to elude me. I did however find Gold Medal flour which was a plus I guess.
Anyway here is my question: I managed to make Lemon Squares using normal sugar instead of powdered sugar, and they turned out "alright". However, the same was not true for Russian Tea Cakes, as I attempted to substitute Country Kitchen pancake syrup for vanilla extract. :/ Below is the recipe. Is there anything I can do to make these tea cakes actually taste good without having access to either vanilla or powdered sugar? TIA.
- 1 cup butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration
