Egg Replacer

Egg replacer - what are the best ones? Everyone new to egg allergies needs to know this to get good results in their baking! I find eggs are actually quite tricky to replace in baking and what you use will depend on what you are baking and what the purpose of the egg in the recipe is.

I'm pretty lucky that Alex can now have baked egg however I like to keep life challenging and create recipes safe for everyone so I still do bake often without egg.

When Alex was first diagnosed with food allergies and we lost egg, baking became quite a challenge, especially when we were then told he couldn't have gluten.

Gluten and egg free can be tricky and I've had many, many baking fails - just ask my kids and husband! They've suffered through many bad cakes and batches of biscuits, but baking with egg substitutes does get easier, especially if you think about what the purpose of the egg in the recipe is. For example, one egg replacer that a lot of people use is banana. I've tried it and I think it's quite good, although it can cause a denser result than other egg replacements. Banana also affects the taste of the recipe so it works best in sweet baking where banana will enhance the flavour like chocolate. Now Alex hates banana, even just the smell, so I don't use banana when I'm baking something for him.

Eggs are required in recipes for these four reasons:

     1.    Leavening - to make ingredients rise
     2.    Binding - to make ingredients stick together
     3.    Moisture
     4.    Taste

When I started on our egg free journey I used Orgran No Egg Egg Replacer. It was easy and it worked! I have found though as my allergy free cooking has become better that I actually really like chia seeds. I used to grind them up first before adding water but now I just tend to use them whole. My kids don't even notice them now but I have been caught out by visitors kids once or twice haha. If texture is an issue, definitely grind them up.

The new egg replacer that was discovered in the last few years is aquafaba. Aquafaba is the water from a can of chickpeas or the water if you cook dried ones (there are other legumes that can be used as well). This egg replacer has excited vegans all over the world now looking for a use for all of their chickpeas! Aquafaba is best used when it's the same consistency as egg whites so if yours is thin and watery just simmer it on the stovetop until it reduces and is thicker. Let it cool before using. 
 

There are lots of other egg replacers you can use and I've created a free chart you can download and refer to again and again. Download your chart here.

There are other egg replacers people have tried that I haven't listed on my chart so if you have something that works well for you please let us know in the comments below.
 

Good luck with your egg replacing and enjoy the chart! Lisa x