Delicious Baking Without Milk or Eggs
Everyone loves succulent brownies and gooey chocolate chip cookies dipped in a glass of milk. If you made the commitment to reduce animal fats in your diet, you might think these delectable treats are consigned to yesteryear, but you will be happy to know that you need not give up brownies, cookies, or even creamy cheesecake just because you decided to refrain from consuming dairy products and eggs to improve your health. It’s never been easier to eat healthy deliciously without feeling deprived because there are many products on the market that mimic the texture and flavor of eggs and dairy.
Making Replacements
Your grandmother most likely used dairy and egg replacements in her baking, but these were mainly put together in a pinch when the recipe was halfway made, and it was impossible to run to the store for more eggs and the ration of milk delivered by the milkman had already been consumed. If your grandmother was short of an egg for cookie or cake recipe, she might’ve used some extra oil, applesauce or mashed banana to help the ingredients stick together. You can still use some of these replacements today, but there are many products available that imitate eggs and milk so convincingly that no one will notice the difference.
The variety of plant-based milks available in your grocery aisle is staggering compared to a few years ago when there was only soy milk, and even then, you had to go to a health store to pick up a carton. Nowadays, even big box retailers have not only plain soy milk, but chocolate soy milk, rice milk, almond milk and hazelnut milk. Of course, the word “milk” is used by way of analogy, because real milk comes out of the mammal and not a nut or legume, but the flavor is distinctive but enough like milk that you can be tempted to dunk a cookie into it or pour it over cereal.
Take care when using these milks in cooking, because many of them added telltale flavor to the recipe. This can be an advantage when baking nut cookies, but may seriously alter the flavor of your corn muffins. One of the most convincing replacements for cow’s milk is rice milk, which has a fairly neutral flavor and a similar consistency to 1% or skim milk.
A Sea Change at the Supermarket
In addition to replacing individual staples such as milk and eggs with plant-based alternatives, you can find ready-made mixes and doughs that can make baking easy and healthy. Look for Hamptoncreek products such as Just Cookies and Just Brownies. The mixes enable you to make delicious baked confections in just a few easy steps. You can also buy the dough that keeps in the refrigerator for much longer than conventional cookie dough because it contains no eggs. In fact, this chocolate chip cookie dough can be eaten right from the roll as a decadent yet healthy snack.
Keep in mind that just because you have eliminated dairy and eggs from your diet, that doesn’t mean that you are necessarily consuming less fat. However, if you use canola oil in your cooking and consume healthy mono-saturated fats from nut milks, you are doing your body a favor. Animal fats tend to be saturated and contain cholesterol which can clog the arteries. While plant-based foods still have fats, these are often monosaturated or polyunsaturated fats that promote heart health. Ironically, you need some fat to lose fat, because high carbohydrate diets of the past left people hungry and tired and led to binges. Consuming healthy plant-based fats is a good way to keep your energy up when you’re dieting and can help control cravings.
Severely restrictive diets may produce short-term results, but it’s long-term lifestyle changes that can help you keep the weight off and feel better. Making substantial, sustainable changes such as replacing animal-based foods for plant-based alternatives can improve your chances for success. Deprivation can lead to temptation and is a way of setting yourself up for failure when trying to lose weight. The best course of action is to allow yourself to have delicious baked foods such as cookies and brownies, but in healthier forms that contain no saturated fats and are free of dairy and eggs. If you allow yourself to enjoy your new lifestyle, you are more likely adhere to your diet and make positive long-term changes on the road to good health
