Secret Ingredient Recipes: Three Unusual Combinations That Work
Surprise, surprise! Check out these tasty dishes that include some very unusual ingredients you might not expect!
Some of the best home recipes lean on a secret ingredient. The diner has no idea what made the cake so moist or the sauce so creamy. The three recipes below show what unusual ingredients can do without changing the surface flavor.
Quick Reference
- Tomato soup spice cake: a can of tomato soup as the moisture base; tastes nothing like tomato.
- Blueberry chicken: roasted chicken with a balsamic-blueberry glaze.
- Butternut squash mac: pureed butternut squash for the cheese-sauce base; lower calorie, similar creamy texture.
- Why secret ingredients work: they add moisture, depth, or hidden nutrition without dramatically changing the dish.
- Common ingredients to “hide”: tomato soup, butternut squash, beets, avocado, beans.
- Best for: picky eaters, hidden nutrition, surprising dinner guests.
Tomato Soup Spice Cake
Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon cloves
- 1 can (10.75 oz) condensed tomato soup
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup raisins
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9×13 pan.
- Whisk dry ingredients.
- Whisk tomato soup, oil, and eggs.
- Pour wet into dry. Stir in raisins.
- Bake 35-40 minutes. Cool. Top with cream cheese frosting.
Blueberry Chicken
Ingredients (serves 4):
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Fresh thyme
- Salt, pepper, olive oil
- Sear seasoned chicken in olive oil 3 minutes per side.
- Add blueberries, vinegar, honey, mustard, garlic, thyme to pan.
- Simmer 12-15 minutes until chicken is cooked (165°F).
- Sauce will reduce to a glaze. Serve over rice or polenta.
Macaroni & Squash Sauce
Ingredients:
- 1 lb elbow macaroni
- 2 cups butternut squash, cubed
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 cups shredded cheddar
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- 1 teaspoon Dijon
- Salt, pepper, nutmeg
- Boil squash 15 minutes until tender. Drain.
- Puree with milk and butter until smooth.
- Cook pasta. Drain.
- Combine pasta, squash puree, cheeses, mustard, salt, pepper, nutmeg.
- Bake 350°F for 20 minutes in a buttered dish if desired, or serve directly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the tomato soup cake taste like tomato?
No. The soup adds moisture and a touch of tang, but the spices completely cover the tomato flavor. Most eaters never guess.
Is the butternut squash mac and cheese kid-approved?
Yes. The squash blends seamlessly with the cheese, and most kids cannot tell. Texture is identical to regular mac and cheese.
Can I substitute frozen blueberries?
Yes. Use directly from frozen; no need to thaw. The cooking time is the same.
Why use secret ingredients?
Three reasons: hidden moisture (tomato soup, applesauce), hidden nutrition (squash, spinach, beans), and creative flavor depth (chocolate in chili, coffee in chocolate cake).
Can I make these vegetarian?
Two of three are already vegetarian. The chicken recipe substitutes well with seared tofu or roasted cauliflower for a vegetarian version.
This article was published by the Staff at FarmersAlmanac.com. Any questions? Contact us at questions@farmersalmananac.com.
- Farmers' Almanac Staff
- Farmers' Almanac Staff
- Farmers' Almanac Staff
- Farmers' Almanac Staff
Can you please tell the size of the tomato soup tin used .. thank you
What size baking dish?
Hi Susanne, you can use two greased and floured round cake pans or a 9x13x2 sheet cake pan.
Next time you make your favorite molasses cookies, add a 1/4tsp of black pepper in with the dry ingredients. The black pepper steps up the flavor with out being noticeable.
My Momm use to make tomato soup cake and it taste very much like carrot cake but so much moister.Very good.
A little note for you….in the 1800’s the nuns in San Antonio were expecting an important Cardinal for a visit and wanted to make a special dish for him. They added chocolate to their spicy dish, and invented Mole’…….hence the expression. Holey Moley!
Not that it’s a secret or anything, but yesterday I threw about a teaspoon of regular yellow mustard into a sauce I had made from cream of mushroom soup and chicken broth. It added a nice savor.
Hi Paula, interesting! If it tastes good, go with it! Thanks for sharing!