In my last post I described how I substituted banana and flax seeds for eggs in a recipe for gluten-free cupcakes. There were better ways to go, as I’m learning.
Among many other things, we’ve been eliminating eggs from my son’s diet as we work to cure his chronic constipation. We’ve seen amazing results since beginning this in May, so I’m thinking this is a valid track.
Unfortunately, it does not seem to be easy to get great results in baked goods without eggs, and I haven’t had a lot of good results so far. Luckily, I’m getting some good advice on egg-free baking from readers of my own and other blogs.
Lisa commented on my post with her own egg substitute recipe:
“We’re always egg free in our household since both my husband and my daughter are severely allergic to them.
I’ve found that 1T of Arrowroot or Tapioca starch mixed in with 1T Rice Oil (or the oil of your choice) and water to make 1/4 cup = a great egg replacer for baking. It doesn’t add a leavening, but fulfills the “binder” function of the egg while not weighing things down.”
Thanks for the great tip, Lisa! I’m going to try it with arrowroot, since tapioca is on our elimination list, too.
I also learned that while using ground flax seeds works as a substitute for eggs, particularly in baked goods, I haven’t been adding them correctly.
I had already discovered that using 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds along with 3 tablespoons of water would work as an egg substitute, particularly in baked goods, but what I didn’t know was there is a technique to making this work.
Over at Elana’s Pantry, Jess commented:
“For each egg to be replaced, blend in a blender/food processor 1 tablespoon flax seed with 3 tablespoons water until the mixture is thick and creamy. I haven’t actually tried it that way, but I have heated that ratio in a saucepan until gooey (about 2 minutes on low, stirring constantly) with fantastic results in many recipes.”
Huh. Who’d have thought you had to combine the flax seeds together with the water before adding to the recipe. Not me, though it does seem logical now. I mean, I thought it was weird to just toss in the ground flax seeds and then pour some water into the mix and leave it like that. No wonder I couldn’t see just how it would come together and act like an egg. And then it really didn’t anyway.
So now I know why, thanks to Jess.
I love how the internet enables this whole exchange of ideas to occur. It’s a pretty cool world we live in.
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8 Comments on “Egg-free Egg Substitutes”
Wow that was unusual. I just wrote an extremely long comment but after
I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing
all that over again. Anyways, just wanted to say excellent blog!
Stop by my page – Katherin
I hate it when that happens! So sorry for the tech glitch!
There are some attention-grabbing cut-off dates on this article however I don抰 know if I see all of them middle to heart. There may be some validity but I’ll take maintain opinion until I look into it further. Good article , thanks and we want more! Added to FeedBurner as well
another tip… I have a huge honking food processor that is too big for something little like a TBS of flax. I grind the flax in a coffee bean grinder. I actually have 2 ( they’re pretty inexpensive) one for coffee, the other for grinding spices, flax, etc. After grinding the flax I mix with water and stir until it starts to thicken. I also sometimes make a big batch of the flax and water and store in a container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. I have written on a piece of tape the amount that equals 1 egg, which I believe is 1/4 cup.
It seems to thicken on it’s own after sitting int he liquid, but blending the whole thing afterward probably thickens it quicker. good to know. i have lots of coconut flour but don’t want to be restricted to using so many eggs all the time. Thanks for the info
This is so good to know! Thank you.
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