• What instead of butter?
• What instead of milk?
• What can I replace sour cream with?
• What instead of honey?
• What instead of eggs?

Gone are the days when people who follow a vegan diet had to forgo many delicious things because there were no plant-based alternatives for them: and that's a good thing!

The tireless experimentation of vegan food bloggers, chefs, and DIY bowl and whisk enthusiasts has led to inventions—often truly revolutionary!—that replace pretty much everything you need to make vegan baked goods. For those unfamiliar with them, we've compiled a short list of vegan substitutes for the most popular animal-based ingredients.

What instead of butter ?

Many vegans simply use vegetable margarine instead of butter. However, not everyone is willing to do this, as its production uses palm oil, the extraction of which is linked to the destruction of large areas of forest and the killing of the orangutans living there. Instead of margarine, it's worth using vegetable oils: coconut oil or even olive oil, if the recipe calls for melted butter. Be careful, though, because butter, unlike oils, is not a pure fat, so you can't substitute it in a 1:1 ratio in recipes: always reduce the amount of fat by about a third, and in some cakes even by half.

What instead of milk ?

Plant milk is perfect! We've already written about the different types, but we'd like to remind you: soy milk is great for baking (it's closest to the consistency of cow's milk, and you can use a flavored version, such as vanilla, in sweet pastries), almond milk, and hemp milk. The proportions don't need to be changed.

What can replace sour cream ?

As for the whipped cream, you can easily replace it with whipped coconut milk that's been refrigerated for at least two days. Carefully separate the thickened portion of the milk (a thin, watery portion will remain in the can—it's worth using it for making a delicious coconut porridge, for example!), pour it into a bowl, and whip it as usual with cream until stiff peaks form.

What instead of honey?

Some vegans eat honey, but those who avoid it add maple syrup, date syrup, agave syrup, barley malt, or other malts instead.

What instead of eggs?

Eggs are the main ingredient in the most popular baked goods—and the hardest to replace. The choice of a substitute depends largely on the eggs' function in baking: Do they bind the dough, as in shortcrust pastries? Do they add moisture and texture, as in carrot cake? Or are they responsible for the rise and fluffiness, as in sponge cakes and cheesecakes?

It sounds complicated, but in fact it is enough to remember a few rules:

If the goal is to bind the dough together, depending on the type of baking we can add:

• Flaxseed (one heaped tablespoon of flaxseed soaked in 3-4 tablespoons of hot water replaces one egg),
• a very ripe banana, mashed with a fork (one banana for one egg; remember that the banana also sweetens the batter a little, which should be taken into account when adding sugar!).

Moisture is added to the cake:

• pumpkin puree,
• Applesauce (about half a cup per egg; note: ready-made applesauce from a jar is usually sweetened!).

Making the dough leaven is a bit more difficult: ready-made egg substitute works best. However, this isn't always readily available when you're craving something sweet, so you usually add one of the "wet" ingredients and an extra portion of baking powder or baking soda, along with a dash of apple cider vinegar, to boost its action.

Recently, aquafaba, or water from canned chickpeas, has enjoyed great success. It can be whipped so effectively that it can even be used to make vegan meringue! Since the almost magical properties of aquafaba were discovered just a few years ago, experimentation is still ongoing: Perhaps it will prove to be the key to making perfectly fluffy, cloud-like vegan sponge cakes without the need for synthetic substitutes.