Homemade Baking Mix

Father's Day. I drove to Grinnell alone this time — left the kids with Kevin, packed the car with a cooler of food that would embarrass a catering company. I brought Dad meatloaf, twice-baked potatoes, a container of baked beans, a chocolate cake from Marlene's recipe, and a loaf of banana bread I made from three bananas that were turning black on the counter because in this family we do not waste food, we transform it.

Dad was on the porch when I pulled in. He was wearing his seed corn cap and his overalls — the same overalls he's worn since the Clinton administration — and he looked like a man who was waiting for something that wasn't going to come but who had decided to wait anyway. He's sixty-five in November. He looks seventy. The farm aged him fast and losing it aged him faster.

I gave him his card and his present, which was a new pair of work gloves because his old ones have holes and he won't replace things for himself. He said thank you. He put the gloves on immediately, even though it was eighty-five degrees, and walked me through the garden wearing them. He showed me the tomatoes like they were newborn calves — each one named, each one tracked, each one a small miracle of dirt and sun and stubbornness.

We sat at the kitchen table and ate the meatloaf and he told me about a conversation he had with the man who farms his old land. They'd run into each other at the co-op. The man said yields were up twelve percent with the new drainage system they put in. Dad nodded and said that's good. He didn't say what I know he was thinking, which is that he told the bank about the drainage in 2008 and they wouldn't fund it. Twelve percent more yield might have saved the farm. Might have saved everything.

He didn't say any of that. He ate his meatloaf and asked about the kids and said Kevin should check the oil in the minivan. That's how Roger Weber says I love you — he tells you to check your oil. I drove home and told Kevin to check the oil. He said it's fine. I said check it anyway. He checked it. It was fine. But that's not the point.

The banana bread I brought Dad that day wasn’t planned — it never is. Those three blackening bananas on the counter were just sitting there, and in this family, that means you bake. I keep a batch of this homemade baking mix in the pantry at all times for exactly that kind of moment: the impromptu loaf, the last-minute biscuits, the thing you need to make before you lose your nerve or your bananas. Dad ate two slices with his meatloaf and didn’t say much, but he wrapped up the rest to save for later, and in our house, that’s the highest possible praise.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes | Servings: Makes about 6 cups

Ingredients

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup powdered whole milk
3/4 cup vegetable shortening (cold, cut into small pieces)

Instructions

Combine dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and powdered milk until evenly distributed.
Cut in the shortening. Add the cold shortening pieces to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or your fingertips, work the shortening into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with no pieces larger than a small pea.
Check the texture. The finished mix should feel dry and crumbly — not sticky or clumping on its own. If it feels greasy or wet, the shortening was too warm; refrigerate for 15 minutes and work it again briefly.
Store properly. Transfer the baking mix to an airtight container or zip-top bag. Label with the date. Store in a cool, dry pantry for up to 3 months, or in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
Use as directed. Substitute this mix 1:1 in any recipe calling for baking mix (such as Bisquick). For banana bread, use 2 cups of this mix in place of the flour, baking powder, and salt called for in your recipe. No additional leavening needed.

Nutrition (per serving, based on 1/4 cup)

Homemade Baking Mix — For the Banana Bread You Make Because You Don’t Waste, You Transform