I thought it was a baking death sentence…
At a time when I spent most of my free time baking, I was told I had to give up eggs.
Cakes, cookies, brownies, bread… if it could be baked without eggs, I wanted to learn how to make it.
But to bake without eggs? Was that even possible?
I’m here to tell you that it’s more than possible — in fact, it’s easier than you might think.
You won’t have to give up all of your favorite recipes. Some you might like even better in their new egg-less state. Really. 😉
There are several egg-replacing products available on the market, yet it’s just as easy to create your own substitutes from ingredients you probably already have on had.
Here are six of my favorites and how to use them.
#1 — Flaxseed
1 egg = 1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds + 3 tablespoons water
Whisk together and let sit for five minutes before use.
Note that flaxseed adds density and a slight nuttiness. Out of all the egg substitutes, this is my favorite and the one I use the most often — in anything from pancakes and waffles, to muffins, breads, and cookies! Even dark cakes like gingerbread, spice cake, and carrot cake.
#2 — Chia Seed
1 egg = 1 tablespoon chia seeds + 1/3 cup water
Combine and let sit for 15 minutes before use.
Chia adds a dark color to baked goods that is especially noticeable in already light-colored products. It is best used in pancakes, waffles, muffins, breads, and cookies.
#3 — Fruit
1 egg = 1/4 cup applesauce OR 1/2 mashed banana.
Fruit adds sweetness and extra moisture to baked goods. There will also be a hint of apple or banana flavor. It makes soft, doughy cookies, so unless you like that, it is best used in pancakes, waffles, muffins, and fruity or spicy cakes.
If your recipe already includes banana or applesauce, use a different egg substitute.
#4 — Baking Soda & Vinegar
1 egg = 1 teaspoon baking soda + 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
This is the best way to retain the original taste and texture when replacing eggs in a cake or cupcake recipe.
Add the baking soda to the dry ingredients and the apple cider vinegar to the wet ingredients when following the original recipe.
#5 — Nut Butter
1 egg = 3 tablespoons nut butter
This is best used in any recipe where a nutty flavor is desirable. It’s a new egg substitute for me, but I’ve already had success using it in cookies and muffins.
#6 — Arrowroot Powder
1 egg = 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder + 2 tablespoons water
This is the best way to retain the original taste and flavor of cookies. It’s also a great substitute in dishes like potato pancakes or meatloaf, where you would use eggs as a binder.
The 3 Egg Rule
There’s a general rule of thumb when baking with egg substitutes: When a recipe calls for three or more eggs, it probably will not respond well to replacements. This is especially true of recipes that call for intense whipping or beating of the eggs or batter.
Of course, egg-based dishes such as quiche, custard, or souffle must be made with eggs, and substitutes cannot be used.
Do you bake without eggs? What are your favorite substitutes?
...without giving up the foods you love or spending all day in the kitchen!
2 free books:
Eat God's Way
Ditch the Standard American Diet, get healthier & happier, and save money on groceries...
We only recommend products and services we wholeheartedly endorse. This post may contain special links through which we earn a small commission if you make a purchase (though your price is the same).
Hi!
I love using “aquafaba” which is the cooking liquid from cooking chickpeas / garbanzo beans. I cook mine at home in the Instant Pot or you can use canned beans.
Simply drain the beans and save the cooking liquid. To replace 1 egg, use 2 TB of aquafaba, as liquid, in your baked goods. To replace 1 egg white, use 2 TB aquafaba.
There is no need to whip the aquafaba unless the recipe calls for whipped egg whites and then, by all means, whip the aquafaba with a whisk until peaks form. Then use as you would eggs. I make eggless meringue cookies, pavlova and even whipped “cream” for baked goods using aquafaba.
Vickilynn I just started experimenting with aquafaba in my chocolate chip cookies and my kids practically ate all of the dough before I could get it in the oven!!!
I hadn’t heard of this one before! Thank you for sharing!
This post reminds me of a tip from Everything Under the Sun’s Wendy Dewitt:
“Eggs” from unflavored gelatin (Knox): Buy in bulk at bulkfoods.com. In all the recipes in this book I have substituted unflavored gelatin for the eggs. The gelatin is less expensive than powdered eggs (as little as 3 cents per tsp) and has an indefinite shelf life.
1tsp gelatin =1 egg, 1 oz gelatin = 12 tsp, 1 pound gelatin = 192 eggs.
Making one egg: Combine 1 tsp of unflavored gelatin with 3 Tb of cold water and stir until dissolved. Then add 2 Tb of hot water and stir. When using your own recipes, decrease the liquid called for in your recipe by about ¼ cup to compensate for the added water from the “egg”.
I always love learning about a new substitute. I will definitely be giving this one a try. Thank you for sharing!
My understanding of gelatin is that it is from a meat source or sometimes from a fish source. So it would not be considered vegan ;(
Just found out my fiancée is diabetic would you have any recipis for diabetics? I really would love some if you have any!
Thank you
Hi Lori, I am not an expert on diabetes, so can’t say for sure, but I would imagine that most of the recipes you will find here would be good, healthy, choices. I know when my Dad went for his diabetic training the nurse emphasized a vegetable-based diet, combined with smaller amounts of proteins, grains, or starches. Many of the recipes offered here would fit that model.
We’ve had a lot of success using ener-g egg replacer in custards. I know there are recipes online to make your own version but at this point in time, we buy it.
I use flaxseed, but find 3T of water makes the recipe too watery. I use one to one ratio – enough to soften the seeds before adding to the recipe.
I use baking soda & vinegar on my hair- now time to try it in recipes! Amazing all you can do with those 2 ingredients
And now Aquafaba sounds interesting.
I don’t eat veg/vegan, just started looking for subs when Happy Hens law spiked the price of eggs here in CA. Now eggs are for omelettes, other ingredients in recipes where you can’t even taste them
Thank you for your very informative post. I have used flaxseed, and applesauce as well as vinegar and soda. I find flaxseed and applesauce wonderful in gluten-free baking because it helps reduce dryness. The vinegar and soda works really well in cakes. I have never tried aquafaba, as mentioned in the comments, but will enjoy giving it a go.
Applesauce is good for moisture, but flaxseed seems to be a better binder. I buy the seeds whole and grind them in a small coffee grinder as needed to keep them fresh longer. I often use nut butters to replace part of the fat.
Very useful tips. Thanks for sharing. I liked the use of super healthy foods you mentioned. Like Flax seeds, Chia seeds. I have seen most of my Pure Vegetarian friends using baking soda as replacement of Eggs.
I have managed to create a custard-like texture without eggs in a pumpkin casserole, using mainly silken tofu and ground chia plus water and applesauce. It takes some figuring out, to get your amounts of fluids right, and the flavor is definitely not quite the same. The basic souffle is not too light, it is usually made with 6 eggs, milk, and a large can of pumpkin, plus all the other normal ingredients of pumpkin pie without the crust, and with less sugar and more spices. So without the eggs, I use silken tofu (regular will not work), ground chia and/or flax and water, some applesauce, and try to get back to the same amount of liquid as the original recipe on the can. I figure 1 egg = roughly 1/4 cup of liquid or a little less. Other liquids like juice or soy milk can be substituted for water, you need to experiment to get the right taste and consistency, but the end result is pretty close.
Hi Andrea,
Thank you for the post!
Fortunately, there are various good versions of egg-based dishes such as quiche, custard, or souffle!
Hi. I need to replace 5 eggs in a Christmas fruit cake. Which egg replacement would you think works best? Grateful for your advice.
Hi, Louise: Five eggs is a lot to try to replace. I checked with our team, and the most anyone has replaced in a recipe is two eggs. Also, it depends on the role that the eggs are playing in the recipe. Are they serving as a leavening agent? Are they acting as a binder? Are they adding extra moisture? Or a combination of some of these things? You might try using several different replacements together — chia seed/water, Ener-G egg replacer, applesauce/banana — to cover multiple bases. No guarantees how the final product will be affected, but you might come up with a new recipe for your fruit cake! 🙂 —Sonya, TCS Customer Success Team
Thanks so much for getting back to me. I think the eggs are a mixture of leavening and binding as the cake is very rich and very moist. I had wondered about using different types of replacer so think your advice is perfect. Fingers crossed and I’ll let you know!
Hi, Louise.
Yes, do let us know how it turns out! 🙂
~Danielle, TCS Customer Success Team
Hi Louise,
I was reading the suggestions on the post here..I just made a carrot cake for my grandson who can not have eggs or dairy. It still was moist and pretty dense.
I had to replace 3 eggs. I used the knox unflavored gelatin and the apple sauce substitutes. It turned out wonderful and family enjoyed it.
Try two different subs.
Sunshine