Buttermilk Tutorial

There are times I do not have buttermilk in the refrigerator and I need it for a recipe.  I love grocery shopping but if I went more than my planned once per week trip, we would be broke!  When I don't have what I need, it is time to improvise and learn new cooking techniques!
Buttermilk is sour, acidic milk.  The acid in the buttermilk, when combined with baking soda in a recipe, creates a light and airy quality in the product.
Buttermilk has some very simple replacements.  These are all over the internet and in cookbooks, so I am not going to cite one source because they are all the same!  Next time you don't have any buttermilk available, try one of these easy replacements.

Option 1: (this is the one I use most often)
1 TBSP lemon juice or white vinegar
milk

Pour 1 TBSP of lemon juice or vinegar into a 1 C measuring cup.
Fill the rest of the measuring cup with milk.
Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes.
Use what you need!

Option 2:
3/4 C plain yogurt
1/4 C milk

Mix the two ingredients together for a substitution for 1 C buttermilk.

Option 3:
1 C milk
1 3/4 tsp cream of tarter

Blend the two ingredients together well so there are no cream of tarter lumps in the milk.