COMMON BAKING SUBSTITUTES (from Food & Wine Magazine)

676goingon50 adapted this version originally produced by  Margaret Eby 

April 17, 2020

Baking is precise but if you go to the trouble of baking, anyone lucky enough to get the results is not going to complain, whether or not you made a few swaps here and there.

However, cooks need to be careful.  A little swap here and there can be helpful.  Making a cake with bread flour will work but it won’t look or taste the same as if you had the original ingredients. That’s OK because it will likely still taste good!  But if you’re worried, use a recipe you have most of the ingredients for.  After all, your tahini brownies won't taste great if you have neither tahini nor sugar. 

Remember: weights of ingredients differ, and swapping out a cup of granulated sugar for a cup of powdered sugar actually means very different amounts by weight. A scale is important here and 67goingon50 finds this conversion chart very helpful. If you don’t have a scale—do your best, but keep that in mind when you’re making swaps. 

FLOURS

Cake Flour 

For every cup of cake flour, substitute a  cup of all-purpose flour less two tablespoons.  Add two tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot powder. The cornstarch inhibits the production of gluten, resulting in a crumb characteristic of cake flour. 

Bread Flour 

Bread flour has a higher percentage of protein than all-purpose flour and it is the protein which strengthens dough, encourages gluten formation, and helps bread rise. But it’s not a huge percentage difference between bread and all-purpose flour, about 1%.  That means you can usually make a one-to-one swap. But bread flour does not work well in recipes where you don't want lot of gluten including biscuits or pie dough.

LEAVENERS

Baking Soda 

Since baking powder is actually made from baking soda, you can use baking powder as a substitute for baking soda. You need to adjust the proportions—use three times the amount of baking powder for baking soda, e.g if a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of baking soda,  add 3 three teaspoons (aka 1 tablespoon) of baking powder instead. There’s usually a bit of salt in baking powder as well, so cut down slightly on whatever salt you’re adding to the recipe.

Baking Powder 

For every teaspoon of baking powder needed, combine 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar with 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda. If you don’t have cream of tartar on hand, you can use another acid like lemon juice or vinegar in the proportions: 1/4 teaspoon baking soda with 1 teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice.

SWEETENERS

Brown Sugar 

The easiest substitute for brown sugar is granulated sugar. If you happen have molasses, you can add it to regular sugar in the proportions: For every cup of brown sugar needed, take 1 cup granulated sugar and  add 2 tablespoons of molasses, ( or maple syrup or agave nectar); process briefly.  

Powdered Sugar

Granulated sugar pulsed in the food processor is a decent approximation of powdered sugar.  Add a teaspoon cornflour for every cup of granulated sugar;  pulse until very finely ground.

Honey 

Replace honey on a one-to-one basis with maple syrup, agave syrup or corn syrup.

COOKING FATS

Butter 

Replace with margarine. If you just need a bit more butter to supplement what you have, add a bit of Greek yogurt.  Or you can take a page from the vegan cooking playbook, and swap in half a cup of applesauce for every cup of butter you need.

DAIRY AND EGGS 

Milk 

If you have a can of evaporated milk, a half cup of evaporated milk with a half cup of water is a good substitute 

Heavy Cream

Whisk a 1/4 cup melted butter with 3/4 cup whole milk or use an equal amount of coconut milk.

Buttermilk 

Add a tablespoon lemon or white vinegar in a cup of milk to replace buttermilk.  Or use about 3/4 cup yoghurt or soured cream with 1/4 cup water until pourable.

Sour Cream 
Use an equal amount of  yogurt, mayonnaise, or pureed cottage cheese.

CHOCOLATE

Unsweetened/Baking Chocolate 

Uuse cocoa powder as a swap. For every one ounce of unsweetened chocolate  needed, mix three tablespoons cocoa powder with one tablespoon of vegetable oil. Or replace semisweet chocolate at a ratio of 1½ ounce of bittersweet or semisweet to every ounce of unsweetened chocolate, and omit one tablespoon of sugar from the recipe per ounce.

Semisweet Chocolate 

Replace or semisweet chocolate with unsweetened chocolate plus a little sugar. For every ounce of semisweet chocolate needed, replace with 2/3 ounce unsweetened chocolate and one tablespoon sugar. OR three tablespoons cocoa powder mixed with a tablespoon of vegetable oil and three tablespoons sugar.

Chocolate Chips 

Replace with chopped up bars of baking chocolate on a one-to-one basis.   

Egg Substitute

• In cases where you don’t need to whip eggs or separate yolks and whites,  substitute 1/4 cup of carbonated, unflavored water for every large egg needed. 
• OR mix 2 tablespoons water, 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1 teaspoon vegetable oil for every large egg. 
• OR replace each egg with 1/4 cup applesauce or mashed banana
• OR add for each egg needed, add 1 tablespoon flax or chia seeds to 3 tablespoons of water and stir to make a paste
• For egg whites, try aquafaba, the cooking liquid in a can of chickpeas. 

With thanks to Margaret Eby, Food and Wine