Cooking Without... A Guide to Dairy and Baking Alternatives

Sometimes we all run out of pantry essentials like baking powder or sugar at a critical moment in the ktichen. Instead of downing tools and doing an emergency shop, it's worth exploring your cupboards for a few ingredient alternatives which might work just as well.

Out of dairy ingredients, or choose to go without? Short of some baking essentials? Don't worry. Those cookies, cakes or snacks can still be at your fingertips with some simple ingredient substitutions - from apple sauce to aquafaba.

Learn how to substitute eggs, cream, milk, sugar, yeast, self-raising flour and more in this useful list of recipes and ideas.

1. Cooking without eggs?

There are plenty of replacements for eggs in baking that work very well indeed. Some of the best substitutes for eggs in your cakes, desserts and sweets include mashed banana, apple sauce, yogurt and buttermilk.

Discover the best egg replacements in baking

 Eggless batter

Making batter without eggs is easy and requires just three ingredients, flour, salt and mineral water, allowing you the joy of deep-fried favourites like tempura.

Learn how to make a 100% vegan batter.

Vegan mayonnaise

Out of eggs - then whip up a vegan mayo using the magical qualities of aqua faba.

How to make vegan mayonnaise 

Eggless meringue

Aquafaba is just as incredible at making eggless meringues. All you need is the liquid from a can of chickpeas, granulated sugar and cream of tartar and vanilla.

Here's how to make meringues without eggs.

2. Cooking without cream? Here's how to make vegan cream

If you don't have any fresh cream, vegan cooking lends a whole lot of ideas, from coconut and cashew cream to rice cream and soy cream.

How to make eight easy dairy-free substitutes

Vegan ice cream

Going without cream doesn't mean going without ice-cream in those melting summer months. 

Learn how to make decadent banana ice cream without cream.

3.  Cooking without milk?

There are so many different milk-free substitutes to choose from these days that we're spoilt for choice.

Discover six dairy free milk substitutes.

Vegan bechamel sauce

This sauce is traditionally made with both butter and milk, but it can also be made in a vegan key.

Discover the recipe for no-dairy bechamel sauce.

4. Cooking without butter?

Avocado pulp, olive oil and macademia oil are just a few of the alternatives you can use for cooking and baking when you're out of butter.

Discover five vegan substitutes for butter.

5. Cooking without yeast?

If you had your heart set on baking and but there's no yeast to hand, that doesn't mean you can't still get your bread fix. Damper bread, soda bread and flatbread all require zero yeast.

Discover yeast free bread recipes.

6. Cooking without flour?

Want to thicken sauces or bake, and you're out of flour? There are ways around it.

How to thicken sauces

Learn how to thicken sauces without adding cornflour or flour in these vegan and gluten-free alternatives.

Gluten free chocolate cake

This rich and chocolatey gluten free cake is good, you'll want to make it even if you do have flour.

No self-raising flour?

If you've run out of self-raising flour, try making your own. As long as you know the ratio (2 tsp baking powder to 150g plain flour), the results will be just the same.

Learn how to make self raising flour.

7.  Cooking without baking powder?

Want to bake a cake, but you're out of baking powder? Don't let that stop you, there are many ways to make your own baking powder at home. 

Muffins without baking powder

Make these fluffy American-style muffins, using cider vinegar and baking soda, instead of chemical baking powder.

8. Cooking without sugar

All out of sugar? Check your cupboards for natural sugar alternatives you might have at the back of the cupboard, like glucose, agave nectar and more.

Discover 10 natural sugar substitutes for sweetening and cooking 

How to make brown sugar

You need just two ingredients to make brown sugar at home: granulated sugar and molasses.

Learn this one trick to making brown sugar at home.

Sugar-free victoria sponge

You can still get your bake on without white sugar, try Xylitol in this recipe for a delicious light and fluffy victoria sponge.

Try our sugar free victoria sponge recipe.