Living with allergies can be a real struggle. Sometimes it may feel impossible to eat what other people can, but I have made it my mission to change that. Substitutes are a huge part of allergen-free baking. Here, you will find most of my favorite substitutes. These are a quick fix to some of the most common allergies.
Here are all of the substitutes that I use in my recipes and beyond. I choose my substitutes by trying different ones until I find the perfect one that does not affect flavor or texture in any negative way. I have had countless friends and family members make sure they are nearly exact replicas of the allergen, without the allergen.
Most of the substitutes on this list can be found at your local grocery store, but some, such as barney butter could be a little harder to find. I have attached links to buy them online, but if you need a quicker version, I would recommend going to a grocery store and looking around.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
Milk
My personal favorite non-dairy milk is the “Silk Original Soy Milk”. It is very creamy and delicious without an overpowering taste in baked goods. A lot of people will tell me that when drinking alone, it has a sour taste compared to cow milk, but it tastes fine to me, my family, and millions of others.
Butter
This butter is honestly a lifesaver. According to everyone I know, that has tried this butter, it tastes almost exactly like dairy butter. A lot of people have even told me that it is much better. In baking, it is nearly impossible to tell the difference between something made with cow butter and something made with this.
Allergic to soy? Earth Balance Soy-free Stick Butter
Buttermilk
This substitute has really grown in popularity over the past few years, and I absolutely love it. It does require a little more manual work than the others, but not much at all.
To make a buttermilk substitute, simply whisk together 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice for every 1 cup of milk. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and then use it however you like.
Heavy Cream
It took me a very, very long time to find a good heavy cream substitute, I still have not experimented with it a lot, but everything I have tried has worked beautifully. It does not whip, but I have my favorite whipped cream substitute below.
My first choice of non-dairy heavy cream substitute is called “Coffee Rich Non-Dairy Creamer”, and it is really hard to find. I am lucky enough to, in my local grocery store named Giant, have them sell small cartons of it, but otherwise, it is hard to find.
The second-best option, which is must easier to find, is the “Original Soy Creamer” by Silk. I have not tested this one nearly as much, so that is why it takes second place.
Whipped Cream
Non-dairy whipped cream can be pretty hard to find in grocery stores. Around where I live, about half of the grocery stores carry this whipped cream. If you can find it, I would highly recommend it. It is absolutely amazing and can be whipped up in only a few minutes.
Yogurt
For my family, this yogurt is a fridge staple. Almost every morning, someone in my family will have this for breakfast. Some of our family favorites are vanilla and peach-mango. They are great!
Semi-Sweet Chocolate
I use this in nearly every recipe that involves chocolate. Personally, I prefer sweeter chocolate over darker chocolate, and that is what this replicates. Everyone who has tried this chocolate absolutely loves it. It melts perfectly as well.
Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Want a chunky version? Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Mega Chunks
Dark Chocolate
While this may not really count as a substitute because dark chocolate does not always contain dairy, I thought I would include the one I commonly use anyway. I love Enjoy Life products because they are produced in an allergy-friendly facility, so no worries there. All of there chocolate is absolutely delicious.
Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Morsels
Chocolate Bars
These are amazing! Enjoy Life has made another hit product. I find myself always sneaking into the pantry to have a few squares in the middle of the day. It makes the perfect snack, and, as a bonus, they come in multiple flavors!
Enjoy Life Rice Milk Chocolate Bar
Enjoy Life Rice Milk Crunch Chocolate Bar
Whole Eggs
This egg replacer has really saved my baking life! It replicates whole eggs beautifully and works every time. I have used this replacer my entire life and have never been left unsatisfied.
Warning: it does not work for substituting egg yolks or whites, only whole eggs.
Egg Whites
I will warn you right now: I have tried this in many recipes, and I have struggled to make it work perfectly every time. It is also the only egg white replacer that I have ever found, and I have looked very hard for many years. This replacer can be very temperamental, but when it works, it is amazing.
Ok, this substitute needs a little more explanation. It is called Aquafaba. It is a chick-pea liquid. The easiest way to get it is to get a can of chickpeas and to simply save the liquid from when you drain them. It is honestly amazing, it whips up like a fluffy cloud and can be used to make almost anything a meringue can.
You can basically just go to your local grocery store to get a can of chickpeas for this, it is by far the easiest substitute to attain. Do not worry, it does not taste like beans.
Sour Cream
This can work wonders to make a nice and moist cake. This non-dairy sour cream is amazing! My parents also use this a lot in Mexican recipes. Delicious!
Mayonnaise
This is a really, really good replacement. Follow Your Heart makes a lot of very good substitutes, and this is one of their best. This is yet another substitute that can be used for literally anything that the dairy version can be used for.
Cream Cheese
This cream cheese is a phenomenon. It tastes so much like dairy cream cheese that it is nearly identical. It can be used every single way that dairy cream cheese can be used for, and it is just as good, if not better every time!
Parmesan Cheese
This parmesan cheese is so good! It is the perfect topping for pasta. When my family has pasta or practically any other Italian dish, it is always on the table ready to be piled on top!
Follow Your Heart Parmesan Cheese
Mozzarella Cheese
These cheeses are amazing. My family uses them on pizzas almost every week, and they both melt beautifully in the oven. They really are very impressive, with practically no flaws.
Cheese #1 – Violife Mozzarella Flavor Grated
Cheese #2 – Daiya Mozzarella Style
Cheddar Cheese
Again, these cheeses are amazing. The same brands that make my favorite mozzarella cheeses make my favorite cheddar cheeses. We also use these a lot on pizza, and they melt great as well.
Cheese #1 – Violife Cheddar Flavor Grated
Cheese #2 – Daiya Cheddar Style
Other Cheeses
There are so many other non-dairy cheeses, there is no way I could list all of the amazing ones. Here are my family’s favorite non-dairy cheese brands.
Peanut Butter
If you are not allergic to peanuts, almond butter is about the closest you could ever get to peanut butter. It has the same taste and texture. For my family, this is an absolute staple. My family loves to dip chocolate bars into this for a sweet snack. Barney Butter creates the best almond butter I have had by far.
Peanut Butter (Nut-Free)
If you are allergic to all nuts, unlike me, then this is a great substitute that my family has sometimes. My family loves sunflower butter and it’s texture, ultra-creamy. They also have lots of flavors for you to choose from!
That’s it! Those are my favorite substitutes. If you have any questions, please leave them in a comment. I hope you have found this article helpful and I hope you love all of these substitutes as much as I do. Make sure to try them out in my recipes!
Such a handy reference guide! Is there a recipe you’ve found that you have the best luck with aquafaba?