Here are some simple swaps you can use when you run out of a specific recipe ingredient while baking. Remember that you are not only substituting the chemical components of the item in your baking, but also moisture content in some cases (like with eggs.) When in a pinch, try pulling from these as staples in your kitchen:
| Ingredient | Amount | Substitute |
| baking powder, double acting | 1 tsp | 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp cream of tartar, 1/4 tsp cornstarch |
| brown sugar | 1 cup | 1 cup granulated sugar |
| butter | 1 cup | 7/8 cup high-temp tolerant oil (like ghee, unrefined or virgin avocado oil, grape seed)12 along with 1/2 tsp of finely crushed salt |
| buttermilk | 1 cup | Take out 1 TBSP milk and add 1 TBSP of vinegar (or lemon juice). Let stand 5 minutes. |
| chocolate, unsweetened | 1 ounce | 3 TBSP cocoa with 1 TBSP butter or vegetable oil. |
| cornstarch | 1 TBSP | 2 TBSP all-purpose flour |
| egg | 1 large | 1/4 cup (57g) of carbonated water, 2 tablespoons water + 2 teaspoons baking powder + 1 teaspoon vegetable oil3 (or) 1/2 tsp baking powder + 1 TBSP vinegar + 1 TBSP liquid. |
| garlic | 1 small clove | 1/8 tsp powder or minced garlic |
| lemon zest (freshly grated from lemon peel) | 1 tsp | 1/2 tsp lemon extract |
| milk, skim | 1 cup | 1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk plus 7/8 cup of water |
| milk, whole | 1 cup | 1/2 cup instant nonfat dry milk plus 1/2 cup of water. (Can substitute 1 cup fruit juice in baking.) |
| onion | 1 small | 1 to 2 TBSP freeze dried minced onion or 1 tsp onion powder |
| white flour, all-purpose self rising | 1 cup | 1 cup all purpose flour plus 1 1/4 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt |
| wine, red or white | any | equal amount of red or white vinegar, grape juice, cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, ginger juice, lemon juice, or apple juice.4 |
Want to dive deeper? King Arthur has this fantastic review with pics as well as Kitchn where they rated and ranked how they felt the substitutes performed in a basic muffin recipe. I encourage you to check those out if you want to learn more on how these substitutions can effect the baking without an actual egg.
Happy baking!
Erin
PS: Don’t forget that to grow your health gardening, you can grow your own garlic, onions and heritage wheat. These typically are started in the fall, so now is a great time to plan these wonderful staples for your pantry.
- “Best Oil For High Temperature Cooking?” by Andrew Weil, M.D. August 11, 2016 https://www.drweil.com/diet-nutrition/cooking-cookware/best-oil-for-high-temperature-cooking/ ↩︎
- “The Best Oils for High Heat Cooking”. May 23, 2022 https://www.getwellseasoned.com/blogs/news/the-best-oils-for-high-heat-cooking ↩︎
- “The 8 Best Egg Substitutes for Baking – Tested and Ranked” by Julissa Roberts. Sep 19, 2022. https://www.thekitchn.com/best-egg-substitutes-baking-23003895 ↩︎
- “10 Best Red Wine Substitutes For Cooking” by Saurbah https://substitutecooking.com/red-wine-substitutes/ ↩︎
- “Country Doctor’s Kitchen Secrets Handbook” FC&A Medical Publishing p 20 ↩︎
- “No Eggs? Here’s your guide for substituting” by Rossi Anastopoulo of King Arthur. January 21, 2021. https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2021/01/21/guide-for-substituting-eggs-best-egg-replacers ↩︎