Oct
Whether you have allergies or intolerances, or are just looking for more wholesome nutrient dense options to add to your meals, this simple guide will help you choose suitable substitutes for your baking needs.
BUTTER
If you’re looking for a lactose free option, you need something that is high in fat and can help bind everything together. Coconut butter or oil is fantastic, whilst other options that can work for many recipes include nut butters and tahini.
A (very) low lactose option is Ghee. Whilst made from butter, the lactose is cooked off and only the pure healthy fat goodness remains, making it a suitable option for many people who are sensitive to lactose.
EGGS
The purpose of egg in baking is generally to act as a binder, to keep everything together. Some great plant based alternatives are:
- Chia seed egg
- Flax seed
- Aquafaba / Chickpea brine (also makes a fantastic meringue replacement!)
Do a google search for any of these and you’ll find some great recipes. They’re all much easier than you may think!
MILK
With the varietiy of different milks on the market these days, this is one of the easiest substitutes to make. Just be wary if you’re using a nut milk (such as almond) that they’re often more watery than a dairy milk, so you may need to add more fat somewhere else in the recipe. Or make your own nut milk at a higher concentration for a nice rich and creamy nut milk!
Great options include
Nut Milk (almond / cashew / macadamia etc)
Coconut Milk
Soy Milk
Oat Milk
Seed milk (hemp / sunflower)
GELATINE
While the benefits of gelatine and bone broth are all the rage at the moment, you may be wanting to avoid it for your own reasons, and there is a great plant based alternative you can use! Agar Agar powder comes from Kelp, and can be substituted for powdered gelatine 1:1 in any recipe. Nice and simple!
FLOUR
As with milks, the options for flours these days are endless. From flours made of vegetables and fruits (think sweet potato flour and banana flour) to nuts and legumes (almond flour or chickpea flour). If you’re not following a recipe then be warned than some trial and error is often needed, as all the flours work very differently to each other and depending on their moisture content can also effect the rest of your mixture…
CREAM
Canned coconut cream can be substituted 1:1 for any recipe requiring dairy cream. And done it the right way it can also be used to make a delicious whipped cream! Check out this recipe from The Minimalist Baker
SUGAR
If you’re using a standard baking recipe it will no doubt call for cane sugar, icing sugar or castor sugar (or sometimes all three!). As derivatives of cane or beet sugar, these guys are generally the worse of the worst – highly processed, refined, often bleached, and lacking in any nutritional content. These alternatives all pack a punch in terms of vitamin and mineral content, are much less processed, and each have their own unique flavour.
Coconut Sugar & Nectar
Maple Syrup
Maple Sugar
Stevia
>> Check out this great guide to natural sweeteners by Buffy Ellen of Be Good Organics
