Substitutions

April 28, 2008 at 8:34 pm (baking, basics, random, substitutions, vegan) (, , , , )

I keep meaning to start a table listing easy substitutions for when you’re trying to ‘veganize’ a recipe. I’ve made notes in a half dozen places, but can I ever find them when I want them? Nooooo. Anyway, here’s a first take, and I’ll keep revisiting this as I think of new things to add.

Ingredient: Substitute:
Milk Easy — try an equal amount of soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, oat milk, potato milk, coconut milk, raw mylk, etc.Bear in mind that different milks have different qualities. For example, rice and almond milk tend to be quite sweet, so might not do the trick in a savoury dish. Soy milk is roughly the same ‘thickness’ as regular milk, but rice milk is very thin — more like a skim milk. Most soy milks are sweetened — you may want to hunt for an unsweetened version (particularly if you have something like mashed potatoes on the menu). All versions have their own benefits, and you can even make some of them yourself, from scratch.
Cream There are commercial soy-based ‘creams,’ but I haven’t tried any yet. When I need to replace cream, I tend to use:

  • Powdered soy milk — mix with water to reconstitute, but keep whisking in extra powder until you reach the right consistency for the type of cream you’re replacing. One caveat — I find that the powdered soy milks I’ve tried tend to have a strong bean flavour that really stands out when you make a soy cream, so this works best when used in small amounts or in highly-flavoured dishes.
  • Thick coconut milk — it’s not as thick as a whipping cream, but just fine for replacing half-and-half. It’s wonderful in curries and soups.
  • Cashew cream — this works very well for creamy sauces, soups, desserts…pretty much anything. Blend approximately 1 part raw cashews with 3 parts liquid until well blended, then add more liquid or cashews as necessary to get the right consistency.
Buttermilk Add 1T lemon juice or white/cider vinegar to a cup of soy milk. I find this does wonders in many baked treats.
Eggs Pureed or mashed fruit. Apples, prunes, and banana all work. To replace one egg, try half a banana, or a quarter cup of apple or prune sauce. Best for baked goods, or anywhere the added sweetness and fruit flavour will prove tasty. I use pureed prunes in baked chocolate goods, though generally to replace oil rather than eggs. The flavour compliments the chocolate taste very nicely.

Tofu. (1/4 cup silken tofu = 1 egg.) This is fairly neutral, taste-wise. Puree it with other wet ingredients before adding to the rest of the dish.

Egg replacer. This is a commercial product — a cornstarch-like powder. There are a few varieties; the one I use is Kingsway, and calls for 1 tsp mixed with 2 T liquid to replace one egg. Others may vary. I’ve had excellent luck with the stuff in baking — it’s very convenient. I do tend to add a bit extra. This is also a neutral taste addition.

Cornstarch. Another neutral taste. To replace one egg, mix 2 T of cornstarch with an equal amount of water.

Flax. “Flax eggs” seem to be one of the most common egg replacers out there. To replace one egg, grind some flax seed (coffee grinders are great for this, but clean them well before and after!). Beat 1 T into 1/4 cup of water, until the mixture thickens a bit. Flax eggs add a slight nutty flavour to dishes.
Butter I find I can use oil in place of butter in many cases; my oil of choice is grapeseed, because it’s fairly neutral taste-wise and handles high heat very well.If you really want a buttery flavour, try Earth Balance — a very tasty vegan margarine. (And no, most margarines aren’t vegan — the majority contain whey powder or casein, which are milk products.) I’ve found that in baked recipes I can cut back a bit on the amount of fat required when using Earth Balance; substituting 1:1 makes things a bit oily.
Lard Use vegetable shortening.
Yogurt Try soy yogurt — there are at least two varieties available out there. If you don’t have soy yogurt, you still have a couple options:

  • Silken tofu, pureed with lemon juice or white/cider vinegar. I’ve done this, but can’t remember the exact proportions I used — I think it was 1T of the lemon/vinegar to 1 cup of tofu.
  • Thickened soy buttermilk. I haven’t tried this myself yet, but bookmarked celineyum’s formula for the next time I’m out: Combine 6 oz soy milk with 1.5 T cornstarch. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, microwave for another 15-20 seconds. Add a squeeze of lemon juice or splash of vinegar, let sit 3 minutes.
Cream cheese Definitely try Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese, which I’ve found in most health food stores and seen in some grocery stores. I always loved bagels and cream cheese, and no longer miss them. The stuff really is as good as they claim…and it makes heavenly cheesecake.
Sour cream There are a couple commercial faux sour creams. I’ve tried the Tofutti one, but remain fairly unenthusiastic about it.

Personally I prefer the raw sour cream I learned to make last month:Soak 1 ½ cups cashews for a few hours or overnight. In a blender, combine the cashews with ½ teaspoon salt, 2+ T lemon juice, and ¾ cup water. Blend until smooth, then taste. Adjust the seasonings as necessary (you will probably need more lemon juice), and then add water a bit at a time until you reach the right consistency.

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