Preparation Tips & Recipes

Baking Without Eggs

When I made the switch to a vegan diet, eggs in baked goods were among my last holdouts. Producing light, tender baked goods without eggs can be a challenge. Most desserts are likely to be a bit more substantial (translation: heavier) than those that use eggs. And your cookies may be more likely to crumble. And some products simply do not translate well to egg-free cooking. (You won't be able to make a vegan angel food cake, for example. )

Now, here is what I believe to be a basic rule of baking: Don't commit yourself to making every dessert a healthful choice by cutting the fat and using whole grain flours. Eggs help to leaven and tenderize foods and when you omit them, you need to take advantage of other ways to make sure your baked goods are tender and light. Whole grain flours–and this includes pastry flour–make products heavier, coarser and drier. That's fine in some products like muffins but in cookies and cakes it won't always work. Reducing fat too much will also make products more dry tasting. And, as much as it may insult your sensibilities, there are times when you simply need to use a solid fat like margarine. With rare exceptions, vegetable oil doesn't work well in cookie dough.

If you don't care about any of this and are willing to sacrifice a bit of texture and tenderness for the sake of having your desserts be more healthful, then you should of course, do so. However, keep in mind that making a shift to a plant-based diet is simply the most healthful thing you can do for yourself. If you set yourself up with too many rules–that you can never use solid fat, always must use whole grains, can eat only low-fat desserts–you are going to make that transition much more difficult. I would suggest that you put your efforts towards the things that really matter a lot–eating plenty of fruits and veggies, learning to enjoy beans, staying clear of meat, cutting down on dairy or cutting it out–and then just let dessert be dessert–in all of its sweet, gooey wonderfulness. (And just indulge in it a little less often.)

My two favorite egg replacers are soy flour and ground flax seed. But some egg replacers work better than others in different recipes and if you are adapting recipes to vegan versions, you may need to experiment.

Vegan Egg Replacers for Baking

  • Grind 3 level tbsp flax seed in a blender until it is a fine powder. Add 1/2 cup cold water and blend until it is frothy and thick. This mixture can replace 2 large eggs in baking.
  • For each egg in a recipe, substitute one heaping tbsp soy flour and one tbsp water.
  • For each egg in a recipe, substitute 2 tbsp white flour + 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil + 2 tbsp water + 1/2 tsp baking powder.

I love dessert but I don't usually have time to labor over fancy strudels and layer cakes, so my list of favorite vegan dessert fare is limited to the simple options you see here. They are fast–and foolproof.

Chocolate Chip Cake

  • 1 1/2 cups white flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • 1 cup cold water
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the oil, vanilla extract, vinegar, and water. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir well to combine. Mix in the chocolate chips. Pour into an ungreased 8 x 8 inch pan. Bake for 35 minutes.

Brownies

This recipes comes from a cookbook written by the Texas Society for Animal Rights. It can get a little crumbly because it doesn't contain eggs–but these are the best brownies I've had!

  • 1 cups white flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the water, oil, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and stir until well blended. Stir in the nuts. Pour into an ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Peanut Butter Cookies

  • 4 tablespoons tub margarine
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups white flour

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Cream together the margarine, sugars, and peanut butter. Add the water and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine the salt, baking soda, and flour. Add this, 1/4 cup at a time, to the peanut butter mixture, mixing thoroughly after each addition. With your hands, form the dough into balls the size of walnuts. Place on a nonstick cookie sheet and press each ball flat with the back of a fork. Do this twice to make the traditional peanut butter cookie crosshatch pattern. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until browned.

Back to Top