4
If baking without wheat, milk, and butter is a puzzle (and I do believe it is), then baking without wheat, milk, butter, and eggs is a four-dimensional puzzle. Replacing wheat is initially tough, because non-gluten grains behave differently than gluten grains, but once you understand the rules and try a few baking projects, you’ll get the hang of it. Replacing milk is relatively straightforward once you understand the non-dairy options you have. Likewise, replacing butter becomes easier once you understand the rules. Eggs—or the lack of eggs—on the other hand, are much more difficult to compensate for. There’s a reason why I titled this chapter “Baking Without Eggs” rather than “Replacing Eggs”—no ingredient (that I have found yet) can do exactly what an egg does. Eggs truly are incredible, despite being inedible by many with food allergies.
Between 1 and 2 percent of the population is allergic to eggs, and egg is the second-most-common food allergen in children (milk being the most common). Egg is also the last ingredient that commercial bakers choose to go without. Mass-produced gluten-free and dairy-free products frequently include egg or egg protein. Most bakeries—even many that cater to gluten-free and food-allergic families—still use eggs; check and double-check if you buy your baked goods over the counter. And of course, egg protein, egg whites, albumin, dried eggs, powdered eggs, egg wash, eggnog, hydrolyzed egg protein—they’re all egg, and must be avoided by those allergic to eggs. Egg Beaters, or other scrambled egg products that you find in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, are made from eggs; they are also off limits for those allergic to eggs. While it is usually the egg whites that cause food allergies (the yolks are primarily fat), it is virtually impossible to separate an egg without leaving traces of the egg white; therefore, egg-allergic individuals must also avoid egg yolks.
Mayonnaise is typically made from eggs. Some mayonnaise substitutes on the market are made from soy—but these are not an option if you are also allergic to soy. Mayonnaise is less of an issue when baking, but you will need something to replace it when you make a sandwich using my recipe for Basic Sandwich Bread. Earth Balance recently introduced a line of dressing and sandwich spreads called Mindful Mayo, based on oils and containing no egg, dairy, or soy. It was first introduced at Whole Foods Market and is slowly making its way into the refrigerated section of health food stores. Some of the formulas contain mustard and/or pea proteins (less common allergens). Of course, for the non-allergic there’s always mustard, but you might want to try a hummus spread, or my son’s favorite—mashed avocados. Also, keep in mind that salad dressings and sauces often contain egg or egg protein. Like the other top food allergens, eggs must be clearly called out on food labels in the United States. Always check.
There are a few things you won’t be able to do with allergen-free egg substitutes. You won’t be able to make a fried, scrambled, poached, or over-easy egg. You won’t be able to make a traditional omelet or frittata. Allergen-free egg substitutes will not work in a dish where the egg is the center of attention without dramatically changing the profile of the dish. Likewise, you won’t be able to use allergen-free egg substitutes to make meringue, a whipped egg white topping. What you can do—yes, even without eggs—is create great baked goods, and I’ll show you how in this chapter. Meanwhile, if you’re lucky enough to be able to eat eggs, go ahead and add them back in. In the recipes in part 2, I have noted the equivalent number of eggs where I have used alternatives. (See Appendix B for more information on substitutions.)
Before we explore how to bake without eggs, let’s take a look at what the egg does in a traditional baked goods recipe. The egg is a multitasker—it plays many roles. To understand how to replace eggs effectively, you need to understand what functions they provide and determine which of those roles is most important for the item you are making. This is where all the puzzle pieces have to come together.
Leavening is the characteristic we associate most often with eggs in baking. Eggs will help your cake rise and your pastries to become fluffy. When egg proteins are heated, their motion causes them to bond (to each other and to the ingredients they are mixed with) and helps the food to lift and expand. If you bake an egg (see the following experiment) it will nearly double in size. But eggs do more than help food rise; they also act as a thickening agent. When you crack open an egg it appears to be liquid, but that’s a bit deceiving. Egg solidifies at 150°F —even over low heat on a stove it will change state and become a solid. As you think about replacing eggs in traditional recipes, it’s important to think of them as a solid even though you will typically add the egg in with the wet ingredients; this mind-set affects the proportion of liquid to dry ingredients when baking.
Egg is also unusual in its ability to hold other ingredients together; it binds other solids. This is a characteristic that is especially helpful as you are working with dough. Texture is another characteristic to think about when you choose an egg replacement. The smoothness of the cake and the fullness that you taste—these are provided (in part) by the egg in traditional recipes.
What I miss the most in baking without eggs is the protein that the egg provides. One egg contains approximately 6 grams of protein. Many gluten-free bakers compensate for the protein they lost when they eliminated wheat by adding eggs (which also helps with leavening), but allergen-free bakers need other options. These include packaged egg replacers, gel made from flaxseeds, and fruit purees. Before we discuss these in detail, I’ve devised an experiment for you to try, to demonstrate what each of these egg substitutes can do:
The Behavior of Egg and Allergen-Free Egg Substitutes When Baking
One egg, scrambled with a fork*
Flaxseed gel: 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal mixed with 3 tablespoons warm water, left to sit for 8 minutes prior to baking
Fruit puree: ¼ cup applesauce (use applesauce that is just apples and water)
Packaged egg replacer: 1½ teaspoons Ener-G Egg Replacer mixed with 2 tablespoons warm water, left to sit for 3 minutes prior to baking
Do not add any additional ingredients to any of the ramekins.
Bake: Place the ramekins on a baking sheet, and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.
Observe: Each of these products behaves differently.
The egg will solidify and double in size and then fall back to about 1.5 times its size prior to baking. Imagine that if the egg were mixed with flour and liquids, it would have the ability to expand the flour, providing what is commonly known in baking as yrise. Note that only the real egg is completely solid after baking.
The flaxseed gel will thicken and become sticky. If you run a fork through it, you will see that it is pliable. While it hasn’t increased visibly in volume, it is tacky and has texture. It thickens, but does not become a solid.
The applesauce will have no visible change in state. Other than being warmed with a bit of the moisture evaporated, it doesn’t change.
The packaged egg replacer will increase in volume to about 1.5 times its original size, and will then fall back after cooling. This mixture is very sticky, with an almost glue-like consistency. Of all of the non-egg options, this is the only one that shows properties of leavening.
*Note: If you are the family member allergic to eggs or you have eliminated eggs from your home, you may choose to do this experiment with all options except the traditional egg.
As you can see, none of the products we refer to as egg substitutes do everything that an egg can do, but they each provide some of the same properties as an egg. This is clearly a case where one size doesn’t fit all. While you will see charts elsewhere that show you how to substitute for egg, what the charts leave out is an explanation of how these products behave; they are interchangeable only to a certain degree. In practice you will see that some options work much better than others, depending on what you are baking. Now that you have a sense of what you can work with and what each egg substitute can do, let’s take a look at each of them in closer detail.
Flax is a flowering plant. The fibers of the plant are used to make linen fabric, but it’s the seeds we’re interested in. The plant bears a fruit that contains tiny seeds. Flaxseeds (and flaxseed oils) are often talked about as healthy foods, and with 9 grams of omega fatty acids, 12 grams of fiber, and 11 grams of protein in ¼ cup of flaxseeds, you can see why. This is just one of the reasons that flaxseed gel is my favorite egg substitute to work with; the other reason is that I am fascinated each and every time I see what these seeds can do.
Flaxseed gel is made by mixing ground flaxseeds or flaxseed meal with warm water. The nature of the seeds makes them capable of absorbing the moisture and thickening into a gel in a way that other seeds (like hemp seeds or sunflower seeds) cannot. If you can find them, chia seeds have the same property as flaxseeds and can also be made into a gel for replacing egg.
I sometimes refer to flaxseed gel as “flaxseed goop” because it is very gloppy and goopy. When mixed properly, flaxseed gel has the consistency of an egg prior to baking—it can slide through your fingers and feels a little bit like the green slime you played with when you were a kid.
There are many different types of flaxseeds, but most are classified as either brown or golden. I prefer to work with golden flaxseeds. While they are slightly more expensive, you will be able to consistently find high-quality golden flaxseeds and the lighter color won’t affect the color of your baked goods as much as the brown flaxseeds would. Flaxseed gel made with brown flaxseed meal will leave little brown specks in your muffins, but they taste good and are a viable choice, as are chia seeds.
Flaxseed gel can be made in two ways—either by grinding your own flaxseeds, or by using pre-ground flaxseed meal. I prefer to grind my own. While flaxseed meal is still a whole food, once the seeds are ground, the meal will spoil more quickly. You can keep flaxseed meal in the refrigerator for up to 3 months, while whole flaxseeds will stay fresh for a year or more—their shell protects them. Here’s the quick and easy method to make flaxseed gel:
How to Make Flaxseed Gel
This formula makes approximately ¼ cup of flaxseed gel; that’s how much you will use to substitute for one egg.
Place 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal in a small mixing bowl.
Add 3 tablespoons of warm (not hot) water.
Use a tiny whisk or fork to whisk together the water and flaxseeds.
Let it sit for 8 to 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken.
Whisk again to fully incorporate the water.
Add the flaxseed gel to the wet ingredients for your recipe.
If you are grinding your own flaxseeds, and I recommend you do, you will find that 1 tablespoon of flaxseeds makes about 1½ tablespoons of flaxseed meal; it fluffs up during grinding, after the seeds are cracked open. To compensate, use a “short” tablespoon of flaxseeds (about three quarters full) when grinding to make one flaxseed egg (or simply measure after grinding). See more about seed grinders.
If you’re doing a lot of baking, I recommend mixing up batches of flaxseed gel in advance. Use the same ratio—1 tablespoon of flaxseed meal to 3 tablespoons of warm water—to make as many “eggs” as you need. Prepared flaxseed gel will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week. When you are ready to bake, measure ¼ cup of flaxseed gel to equal one egg. Bring the flaxseed gel to room temperature before using it (as you would with an egg).
To make chia seed gel, follow the procedure above, but use only ½ tablespoon of chia seeds to 3 tablespoons of warm water to achieve the proper consistency. Chia seed gel can be made with either whole chia seeds or ground chia seeds, whereas flax seeds need to be ground before they can be digested.
I mentioned earlier that this egg substitute most closely mimics the consistency of an egg prior to baking. Also like an egg, flaxseed gel has the ability to hold other ingredients together; while it doesn’t solidify, it does have a tackiness that helps baked goods form. That’s a property that will come in handy when you prepare batters and doughs.
Applesauce is about as close as you can come to a superfood for baking. Besides the obvious virtues of being a whole food, all natural, gluten-free, and rarely a cause of food allergies, it’s packed with vitamin C and fiber. It’s no wonder applesauce is one of the first solid foods many of us feed our children. Even though I have chosen to write about applesauce in a chapter about replacing eggs, applesauce could be considered the “universal replacer”; it can be used in place of sugar or other sweeteners, or—in some cases—to replace a portion of the fat.
When choosing applesauce to replace egg, the measurement is simple: ¼ cup of applesauce should be substituted for one egg. This amount gives a volume that is very similar to the egg, making it easy to replace in batters. The applesauce should be added in with the wet ingredients, and the resulting batter should be very similar in consistency to the same batter made with an egg. Because the real egg will solidify quickly and the moisture in the applesauce will need time to evaporate, the same batch of brownies made with applesauce will take a few minutes longer to bake than if it were made with egg. The inverse is also true—if you choose to use traditional eggs in any of the recipes in this book, reduce the baking time by a few minutes to compensate.
If you want to reduce the sugar in a recipe, try replacing up to ½ cup of sugar with an equal amount of applesauce. Likewise, if you want to reduce the fat, up to ½ cup of fat (oils only—not shortening) can be replaced with applesauce. But stick to just one of these applesauce substitutes at a time. For example, if you are using applesauce in place of eggs, do not also use it to replace the oil—too much of a good thing can turn out badly. Also, if you choose to use applesauce in place of sugar or fat, do so only in batters; doughs and yeast breads have different requirements, which we’ll explore in “The Allergen-Free Baking Lab.”
Applesauce is nothing more than apples and water (and sometimes a preservative). It’s a fruit puree. Many of the commercially prepared applesauces sold in grocery stores are sweetened (often with high-fructose corn syrup), but I suggest you use the unsweetened varieties. These are sometimes labeled “natural” or “unsweetened.” Some also have added flavors (such as cinnamon) or are blended with other fruits. All of these choices will work, and can be found easily and inexpensively. Or—you can try making your own.
Applesauce is as easy to make as mashed potatoes—and the process is surprisingly similar. The advantage of making your own (besides another use for those baskets of fall apples) is that you can control the ingredients. My version is unsweetened, and contains no added preservatives.
Unsweetened Applesauce
This recipe works best with sweet apples (Red Delicious, Fuji, or Gala all work well) or a combination of apples. Because this recipe contains no preservatives, it will only keep in the refrigerator for about a week. Freeze what you don’t plan to use. Adding 1½ teaspoons of fresh lemon juice to the blender with the apples will prolong its shelf life. You can scale the recipe up (just double, triple, etc.) for big batches. For a sweetened version, add 2 tablespoons of sugar while blending.
Makes about 1½ cups of applesauce (the equivalent of 6 eggs)
4 cups peeled, cored, and chopped apples (about 4 medium-large apples)
About ¾ cup water
Place the chopped apples in a medium saucepan and pour the water over them, just enough to cover. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes, until you can easily insert a fork through the apples. Drain. Place the apples in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Let the applesauce cool and then refrigerate it.
As noted earlier, applesauce is simply a fruit puree. Any other fruit puree can provide the same function as applesauce does—pears, bananas, and peaches (any soft fruit that you might find in a baby food jar) all behave comparably to applesauce in baked goods. Keep in mind that fruit purees do add taste. I recently made Double Chocolate Muffins with a mango puree in place of my usual ½ cup of applesauce. The muffins baked perfectly, but they did have a hint of a mango taste. Applesauce lends a more neutral taste.
Remember that fruit puree is used primarily to provide texture; it will not provide any leavening. That’s where packaged egg replacers—or chemical egg replacers—come in.
Yes, I just referred to these as chemical egg replacers. Is that a bad thing? Absolutely not! Remember organic chemistry? Everything we eat is made up of organic compounds. In the case of packaged egg replacers, organic compounds are combined to create what is known as an egg replacer. While these are processed foods (and they provide virtually no nutritional value), this is one scenario where you should give yourself a pass and embrace them. If you can’t see clearly, you wear eyeglasses, right? If you can’t bake with eggs, an assist with leavening is in order.
The term egg replacers is actually a misnomer—I like to think of them as super-duper baking powders. A typical baking powder contains a leavening agent (e.g., sodium bicarbonate), an acid, and a starch. Now, let’s take a look at the ingredients in a packaged egg replacer: starches, leavening agents (e.g., calcium carbonate), an acid, and gums. They have very similar profiles, the egg replacer having more starch and the added benefit of gums.
If you had a recipe that was devised to leverage egg replacer, you could actually add the product directly to your dry ingredients, just like you do with baking soda, baking powder, and xanthan gum. But because the product is marketed as a substitute, the package directions suggest that you combine it with water. This is a good idea because it allows you to use the product as a liquid (like an egg prior to baking), and it ensures that the gums are thoroughly incorporated (without lumps) in your baked goods. See more on gums.
Most egg replacers are simple to prepare and instructions vary by product. I have called for Ener-G Egg Replacer in many of my recipes, because it is easy to find, easy to use, and it contains none of the top eight allergens or gluten. With this product, 1½ teaspoons of egg replacer should be combined with 2 tablespoons of warm water to replace one egg. Make sure you use warm (not hot) water, and whisk the ingredients together with a tiny whisk or fork in a ramekin or small mixing bowl. Let it sit for 3 minutes before re-whisking and adding it to your wet ingredients. You will see that the mixture thickens a bit as it sits, giving it a nearly egg-like consistency. In volume, this mixture will measure less than a medium egg. That’s okay. Remember that an egg solidifies during baking—resist the impulse to add more liquid.
Ener-G Egg Replacer contains potato starch, tapioca flour, calcium lactate, calcium carbonate, citric acid, and gums. Another similar egg replacer is Orgran No Egg Natural Egg Replacer; this product contains potato starch, tapioca flour, calcium carbonate, citric acid, and vegetable gum. The gums in these products are very similar to xanthan gum and will become thick and gluey (see my experiment). In addition to the leavening function, packaged egg replacers provide a stickiness that helps to hold dry ingredients (and especially gluten-free flours) together. This makes them a shoo-in as my preferred choice for an egg substitute in yeast breads.
Other products on the market perform a similar function to packaged egg replacers, but are marketed as (and more aptly named) gluten substitutes, or cake enhancers. Orgran offers Gluten Free Gluten Substitute (GfG) that is made with rice flour, pea extract, maize (corn) starch, and gums. King Arthur Flour offers Gluten Free Cake Enhancer (that is not just for cakes) made from rice starch and fatty acids. Both of these products are formulated so they can be mixed in with the dry ingredients. If you need to avoid xanthan gum, choose one of these instead, but prepare them as you would an egg replacer (mixing with warm water).
As you look for chemical egg replacer products at the grocery store, be aware that there are some egg-free variations that contain other common food allergens. One of these is Bob’s Red Mill Vegetarian Egg Replacer, made with wheat and soy proteins. Read the labels and check for other allergens that your family needs to avoid before purchasing an egg replacer.
If none of the packaged egg replacers work for you, or you just prefer to make your own, it’s very easy to do:
Mix Your Own Egg Replacer
Combine 1 teaspoon of corn starch (or tapioca starch) with ½ teaspoon of baking powder and ⅛ teaspoon of xanthan gum (or guar gum). Whisk these ingredients together well in a small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of warm (not hot) water. Whisk together until well blended. Let it sit for 3 minutes, then re-whisk and add the mixture to the wet ingredients for your recipe.
Once you prepare an egg replacer, be sure to use it promptly; it will lose its effectiveness if it sits too long.
Not every recipe for baked goods needs an egg. That’s right, I said it. Sometimes, the best option is to just leave out the egg. I almost never add an egg to a pie crust, for example. I don’t need the leavening and I can keep the dough together with water and shortening. Adding an egg replacer is unnecessary in that situation. If you omit the egg replacer from a cake, you may have some loss of texture, but the cake will still form (assuming you used enough baking powder for leavening). You can forgo the egg if the other ingredients in your recipe are able to do the job without it.
Gluten-free recipes often need more baking powder and/or baking soda than do their wheat counterparts. Later on, you will see that I recommend adding additional baking powder and/or baking soda to compensate for the loss of gluten in the flour (see more). The same concept applies to replacing the eggs. Baking powder and baking soda are simply leavening agents, and (as noted earlier) baking powder is a key ingredient in packaged egg replacers. With some recipes, you may be able to achieve what you need by simply adding that extra baking powder. This approach will be most effective with baked goods made from batters—including cakes, muffins, and quick breads.
Keep in mind that yeast is also a leavening agent. When you are working with yeast, you may find that simply increasing the amount of yeast you use is enough to compensate for the lack of an egg.
Two options that home bakers don’t think of as readily when they need to substitute for eggs are vinegar and carbonated water. One tablespoon of vinegar (including apple cider vinegar, brown rice vinegar, or white vinegar) may be able to take the place of an egg; I find that this works best in recipes that are already acidic, such as Basic Chocolate Cupcakes. The vinegar combines with the sodium bicarbonate in baking soda or baking powder, giving off a bubbly gas that provides lift. Carbonated water doesn’t need another chemical to react with; the carbonation performs the trick all by itself. Replace up to 1 cup of water (or milk) with carbonated water. This works best when the milk is not required for taste. Note that these options provide leavening, but do not mimic the texture or binding capabilities of an egg.
Remember that puzzle we were solving? Selecting which ingredient to use in place of the eggs is often the most critical decision when baking allergen-free. It’s not just about replacing individual ingredients; it’s about how they interact. My thought process in choosing what to use instead of an egg starts with identifying what role the egg would have played in that recipe, had I been able to use it.
When texture is my primary concern—this would be the case when making cakes, muffins, or cookies—I will choose a fruit puree or flaxseed gel. I may also add baking powder to compensate for the loss of leavening ingredients. If I want the stickiness and hold of an egg (perhaps in a cookie or pie crust), then flaxseed gel is the best option. This option is also the one that most closely resembles the consistency of an egg—which means that a batter will look and feel the same (before baking) as if I used an egg laid by a chicken. If I really need the leavening capabilities of an egg, then a packaged egg replacer (e.g., Ener-G Egg Replacer or one that I have mixed on my own) is the best choice. Whereas yeast provides its own leavening capabilities, if I need to add an “egg” to a yeast recipe, I nearly always choose a packaged egg replacer. (See Appendix B for more on which options to use when adapting traditional recipes.)
Ask yourself, “What do I need the egg to do in this recipe?” and then choose accordingly.
