Does the lot you are playing on has the Simple Living Lot Challenge by any chance? This Challenge makes you require all ingredients to cook a meal, you can turn it off by clicking on the trophy in the Lot Traits UI.
@CrystalWB For Cooking and Gourmet Cooking you will see a 'use fresh ingredients' option box that you can tick or untick to let your Sim cook or not cook a meal that they have/have not got the ingredients for.
However, for Baking your Sim will need to have certain (listed) ingredients in order to bake certain items. There is no box for a 'use fresh ingredients' option box that you can tick or untick to let your Sim bake a meal that they have not got certain listed ingredients for. For instance:
If I want my Sim to make a Spinach and Onion Quiche, but she does not have a spinach or and an onion, she has no option available to make that quiche:
However, if I have her harvest a spinach and an onion from her plants, she does have the option available to make that quiche:
This is not due to Mods/CC [I do not have any nor have I ever had any in my game, and this lot and save are from way before Cottage Living (no simple living trait)]. It has been like this for Baking as long as I remember. I also think it's odd. Perhaps it's for the purpose of making Baking 'extra special'?
@CrystalWB And onion! I have plants in the gallery if you need them. Happy baking!! 🙌
