Vegan Baking: A How-To

The first major baking-limiting allergies I discovered were dairy and eggs.  While I wasn't primarily motivated by ethics, the end result of these limitations was that I dived head-first into vegan baking.  Even now, as I'm venturing into wheat- and gluten- free baking, the same rules to vegan-izing recipes still apply.  So I thought I'd start out this blog by summarizing the easiest how-to's of vegan baking.  I don't claim originality for any of these ideas, and they can be found all over the internet; but a summary is never harmful and this way I have somewhere I can link when I reference substitutions in future.

My first approach when baking anything vegan is to search for a tried-and-true vegan recipe.  But, if I find an incredible recipe that still has milk or eggs, or if  I really want to make one of the recipes I grew up making as a kid, I know I can always turn to one of the many available substitutes.

• Dairy

• Soy Milk: I avoid soy milk because I'm allergic, but it's thick in texture, curdles when mixed with vinegar or citrus (rather like regular milk), and generally works well as a substitute in any recipe.  To replace buttermilk, the same recipe as with real milk applies: 1 cup soy + 1 tbsp lemon juice or white vinegar.  
• Almond Milk: My preferred dairy substitute.  It's also a reasonable interpretation of the thickness of milk, and has a very neutral flavour compared to soy or rice milk.  Same rule applies for buttermilk substitutes.  (Science note: when mixed with acid, almond milk doesn't so much curdle as precipitate (i.e. solids seem to "fall out" of the liquid).  Looking for signs of precipitation is also a good way to tell when old almond milk has gone off.)
• Rice Milk:  I use rice milk when I'm baking for large groups, given the prevalence of nut allergies these days.  Rice milk is much, much thinner than milk or other milk substitutes, and it doesn't change appearance (or give visible evidence of curdling) when mixed with something acidic.  That said, I've never had any trouble using it in a recipe.  
• Hemp Milk: I've never tried it due to cost.  As far as I know, though, it can again be used as a direct substitute (and protein hit) in baking.
• Keep in mind that most milk substitutes come in varying kinds - plain or vanilla, sweetened or unsweetened - so take the kind of milk into account when adding vanilla or sugar to a recipe.

• Butter:
• I grew up eating margarine because it was lactose-free.  However, when I discovered I was actually allergic to milk protein, I also discovered that very few margarine are truly dairy-free.  Almost all margarines contain some degree of milk ingredients, primarily whey powder, so make sure to check your ingredients label. 
• Earth Balance vegetable shortening and vegan margarine are the gold standard of vegan baking.  However, they can be hard to find, expensive, and wickedly solid (like butter), and I often can't be bothered to sit around waiting for my margarine to soften.  
• Fleischmann Margarine is labeled "lactose-free", but reading their ingredients label, I'm pretty sure it's actually completely dairy-free.  (There is debate on the internet whether this is actually true; but I check the ingredients label every time I buy and I've never seen whey powder yet).  Fleischmann's is very soft, though, so it's less ideal recipes that really rely on the solidity of cold butter (like pastries and biscuits).  
• I've heard that Becel has just introduced a vegan margarine, but I've never tried it.
  

• Eggs: 
•  Ener-G Egg Replacer: The most conventional egg replacement, Ener-G is a mix of starches which impersonates the binding properties that eggs provide in a recipe.  Ener-G can be used in place of eggs in pretty much any recipe, and is the most reliable substitute in a recipe that heavily depends on eggs.  However, it's expensive, and a lot of people don't have it easy-to-hand when baking from home.  If you do want to try it, it's available at specialty stores (Capers, Choices, Whole Foods, etc.), and I've also found it at Save-On-Foods as well.
• Ground flax seed: My personal favourite egg substitute.  1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water = 1 egg.  I like it because not only do I get an egg substitute, I get a healthy omega 3 boost in my baking.  I've used flax in cakes, cookies and banana breads with great success.  Still not winning huge points for easy availability, however.  (Flax seed can be bought pre-milled, or can be ground in a coffee grinder).
• Mashed banana and Applesauce: Both can be used in some baking (cookies and cakes especially) in place of eggs.  They tend to convey a distinctive flavour, but sometimes that's an advantage rather than a disadvantage.

• Honey: I know some vegans who won't eat honey because it's technically an animal product, while other vegan friends who don't consider it as ethically problematic as dairy & egg farming.  I continue to use honey in my baking because I am not actually vegan, and I prefer whenever possible to use non-refined forms of sweeteners; but if you're baking for a vegan friend, I suggest checking in advance as to how they feel about honey.