This week, I took some time off to recuperate after a few big work projects and a busy spring for both of my girls. I thought I might fill the time with some books, maybe update my mp3 playlists. Instead, I ended up in the kitchen again---but just for fun.
I like to think of myself one way: very organized, with a meal plan for the week that doesn't get boring for anyone because I circulate recipes well and freeze ahead. In reality, I seem to thrive on experimenting with different recipes every day and can't seem to repeat more than a few family favorites before trying something completely new. I have a very patient family. For vacation kitchen time, I decided that my family really needed a good cookie cake and that I had to finally use up the zucchini in my freezer before I could buy more at the Sunday market. I found some lovely recipes, but each had 1 egg to replace. To me, these are easy recipes to convert, much more so than ones with multiple eggs. The biggest question is what starch to use in place of the egg. Eggs are so valuable in baked goods because they offer not just airiness but also cohesion: they bind the other ingredients together to avoid a crumbly result. Different powdered starches offer the same thickening glue. Three common examples are cornstarch, arrowroot powder, and tapioca flour. Popular boxed egg replacers sometimes contain potato starch. In general, 1 Tbsp of a starch thickens 1 cup of a liquid. Until recently, I've relied only on cornstarch---a grain, not root, starch. Although it is best with high heats and longer cooking, it's fairly all purpose. If you have a corn allergy, though, the other two options are essential to have on hand. All three starches can be exchanged mostly on a 1-to-1 basis in baking, but they do have best-case uses. For example, arrowroot and tapioca are clearer and more gel-like than cornstarch, and tapioca thickens well at lower temperatures; they both freeze better than products with cornstarch, too. Breads with too much tapioca starch can become chewy, though, especially after the first day.
Cinnamon zucchini bread and chocolate cookie cake recipes are easily veganized, with only 1 full egg each.
I do want to try each recipe again before they're posted, but I can share some cheater's notes now for replacing that single egg in your own recipes: 1) For breads or products that rise, add 1/2 tsp baking soda (not powder!) 2) For denser products (like that cookie cake), usually leave the baking soda or powder quantities the same. 3) 1 Tbsp each of applesauce, water, and the starch combined and added to your batter can replace the uses and texture of 1 egg. 4) To replace egg whites only, try the starch and water without the applesauce. What types of egg replacers do you use to make new or favorite recipes egg free?
3 Comments
5/18/2017 02:43:13 pm
This is really interesting. I use applesauce in most things but extra soda if I want things to rise or be airy. Although I find if you use too much you can really taste it and I've never got an egg free muffin to rise properly! I find egg replacer works well in most cakes #freefromfridays
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1/15/2021 07:11:01 am
Thanks, your write up is really insightful nice and helpful content. Thanks for sharing a helpful article with us.
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Hi, I'm Nicole. ABOUT THE BLOG An apothecary is a person or a place. Either one implies healing and relates to pharmacy in its truest sense, as a source of treatment and advice. This blog is my way of uniting my pharmacy training with my efforts to provide a healthy and safe lifestyle for my family. In true apothecary form, I research and prescribe alternative ingredients that work just right in each specific recipe, and I would like to share the results with anyone who needs help making their own family’s kitchen allergy safe and heart healthy. Categories
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