Substitutions in Flour, Oil and Sugar

These are a few of my favorite things…

Since you are reading this blog, I am sure you have already discovered the need to make substitutions to your recipes. There are gluten-free flour blends to make it easier to bake, and swapping milk for dairy-free options is a given. But you may have found that it is important to know the reasons behind why you might choose certain flour blends over others, one egg substitute over another, or one nut milk over another. Not to mention the “whooops I ran out!” substitutions needed that have nothing to do with diet and everything to do with what you have in your cupboard now when you are making a dish.

I want to share some of our rationale and my favorite tips for substitutions with you. Some of it is chemistry, some of it is intuition, and some of it is preference. And, since you no doubt have your own tips and substitutions, I want to specifically invite you to comment here and share them. 

Also, I want to be very clear – we are not affiliated with any of these brands and get no compensation for recommending them or from any purchase thereof. We simply like them and are sharing our hard earned experience. In addition, the links I provide are to give an example of a product or a place you could buy, not a suggestion to buy this exact item or from this exact place.

Ready? Let’s go!

Gluten-Free Flour Blends

We use Maninis Gluten Free Flour. There are others out there that do an excellent job of substituting for wheat flour, but Maninis has something that no other blend we have found can match: It is entirely on diet. Maninis contains no rice and no potato starch, both of which are important to the anti-inflammation diet. We have had great success with this blend, substituting it 1:1 for all-purpose flour.  And an added bonus, it has xantham gum already in it.  So no need to add an extra ingredient to make it bake or rise.

Marianne’s Tip: Weigh your dry ingredients instead of using measuring cups.

Even if a mixture substitutes 1:1 for flour, weight is a better measurement than volume. It eliminates air pockets and over-compacting and will produce a better product every time. 1 cup of all-purpose flour weighs 120 grams or 8 ounces. I suggest using grams rather than ounces, as they are simply more precise. Most electronic kitchen scales will use either unit of measure.

I also use a small, fine sifter for baking powder and soda, to eliminate lumps.

I grew up with a squeeze handle sifter, but have also used a crank handle sifter. Both are good.

In addition to weighing your flour blend, I suggest sifting it. I have noticed that some gluten-free flour blends tend to clump together, in a way that all-purpose flour does not. To ensure a smooth consistency of whatever you are making – cookies, bread, pancakes, etc – it is a good idea to sift the flour. You can do so using a sifter, or a mesh colander. Just place the item to be sifted in the basket and tap it on your other hand. If you need more oomph, you can use a spoon to encourage the mixture to go through.

Dairy Alternatives

There are so many liquid non-dairy choices out there, I will not even try to cover them all. Instead, I will talk about the ones I use most, and why. Let’s start with milk replacements. We use Almond Milk, Soy Milk, and Coconut Milk (from a can, not a box) most of the time. When possible, we get unsweetened, but don’t fret about the inclusion of the vanilla. It really isn’t strong enough to show in a recipe.

Almond Milk is a favorite for anything sweet, even if the almond milk is unsweetened. I love almonds, and actively enjoy their flavor in almond milk. It is smooth, mild, and pleasant. We get ours at Costco and Cash and Carry but it is available all over, in shelf-stable boxes or refrigerated cartons. 

Soy Milk is perhaps the most neutral of the milk alternatives that I use. I am happy to say that the chalky taste of yesteryear is gone, leaving just smooth taste and texture in its wake. I would use this for any delicate or exposed application – biscuits, gravy, savory breads, etc. It is reliable and is perhaps the workhorse of the milk alternatives.  This is also our go to for lattes.   If you have concerns about soy, the new studies are reversing their decisions about soy being bad for you.  

Coconut Milk is where I turn for anything rich and creamy – bisques, puddings, chowders, and so on. Cans of coconut milk come in Lite and Regular, and I buy Regular. It is a wonderful cream or half and half replacement, and I personally enjoy the mild flavor of coconut. I have also bought coconut cream from Trader Joe’s and have heard it can be whipped and used in place of cream, but I have never tried it.

Terradon’s tip: “I keep a can of coconut milk in the fridge at the ready when I want to whip out my favorite dessert!” 

The other non-dairy necessity is a butter replacement. We have two basic choices here, and both are excellent – coconut oil and Earth Balance.

Coconut oil is my go-to shortening replacement. Wait, I hear you say, shortening is vegetable based! Yes, it is, but Terradon doesn’t buy it and I need something to fill the gap. Fortunately, coconut oil does a bang-up job filling in for shortening. It will give a distinct coconut flavor, so choose your applications carefully, but it is otherwise an excellent replacement. Please note: I strongly suggest you not try to substitute coconut oil for butter when baking. The reason is water – butter has water in it and that water is accounted for in, say, your cookie recipe. Take that out and you will not get what you expect. You need something with water in it, and that, gentle readers, is Earth Balance. 

Earth Balance, on the other hand, fills in for butter, whether on some gluten-free toast or in chocolate chip cookies. We get the soy-free variety, because a friend has a soy allergy, but they are all good choices. There are further broken down into buttery spread (in a tub) and buttery sticks (in a box). The spread is soft and easy to spread. The buttery sticks are much firmer and better for baking. You can (and we do!) bake with the spread. But, I am convinced that the sticks are superior. 

Why? Well… it is all about fat. The buttery sticks use a slightly different oil blend. In the end, they have the same total fat, but the breakdown between the types of fat is different. Buttery sticks are a more solid fat, and thus bring that solidity to your cookies and pastries. It acts more like butter and that will give you a more reliable result. But, can you bake with the spread? Yep, go ahead. 

Avocado is a brilliant substitute for oil.  You can use it bake with, on your toast or in a smoothie. It’s very nice for  your complexion as well.  

Terradon’s Tip: Make sure the avocados you’re using are ripe, which makes them creamier. To find out, squeeze them slightly and check the stem on top. If you pull the stem off and it’s brownish, the avocado is ripe and in perfect shape to do your bidding. 

Sugar and Sweeteners

Let’s start with cane sugar, and then move on to sugar-replacements. Cane sugar is very reliable. Whether you use organic evaporated cane juice or a bag of white sugar, most sugar is pretty much the same in the end.

Marianne’s Tip: If you need superfine sugar, for drinks or cakes, you make make it yourself in a food processor or blender. Just pour in the sugar and process until fine, then stop. If you keep going, you will make powdered sugar. In that case, you can add some corn starch and use it just like store-bought. 

My sugar is sugar statement does not include brown sugar, by the way! Brown sugar is a mixture of molasses and sugar, and that gives it the flavor and packing ability we know and love. You can make brown sugar by mixing 1 cup white sugar with 1 tablespoon molasses in a mixer. Don’t use your blender, or you will break down the crystals too much! I have no idea what superfine brown sugar would be like, but I don’t recommend it!

Marianne’s Tip: Need to add sugar or a substitute to a drink? Make simple syrup – equal parts hot water and sugar, and stir. Then, add away! This may also work for substitutes, just remember how sweet they are and adjust appropriately. 

Okay, so sugar is sugar. But, what about sugar substitutes? Terradon is avoiding sugar, and I try to give it the cold shoulder, too. But, when you just have to have it, what can you do? Well, there are options. 

Stevia is a favorite of Terradon’s. She drinks soda sweetened with stevia and adds drops to her coffee. I really taste the bitterness of stevia, and so I don’t use it much. Not everyone has this issue, so give it a whirl! It is super sweet and will not elevate your blood sugar. There are flavored stevias too that add character to your drinks.

Splenda – AKA sucralose – is quite popular, as well. It is, as advertised, made from sugar and thus tastes like sugar. This is a favorite of Terradon’s and also of my husband’s, who prefers it as his soft drink sweetener over aspartame. It tends to bake well, and works measure for measure as sugar.  One note: Splenda is not aspartame.  Many anti artificial sweetener articles that are out there say that Splenda is bad for you and then start to outline the issues with aspartame.  I believe that this is just an accidental association. Splenda has years of studies with little issues. The trick is to listen to your body. If Splenda makes your body grouchy, don’t eat it. 

Monkfruit is the new kid on the block, about 150 times as sweet as sugar, and I am interested in this one. While monkfruit by itself tastes a little odd to me, I have had some blends I really dug. Terradon bought Lakanto, a blend of monkfruit and erythritol (a sugar alcohol) and we have been baking with it the last few days. I like the flavor and it does well as a sugar substitute in cooking. We processed this into some excellent powdered sugar and I loved the results. 

Sugar Alcohols are a favorite of mine, and I like xylitol and erythritol best of the bunch. It seems that malitol is the most common in sweets sold at the market, but it is problematic. Let’s just say that you may experience gastrointestinal distress if you eat too much of it.

Xylitol is about as sweet as sugar, and has a clean, sugary taste. It is also good for you teeth (imagine that!) and is being put in gum and toothpaste as a result. But, beware! It is poisonous to dogs, so keep your xylitol and your pooch separate. It dissolves best in hot liquid, so don’t try to add it to your lemonade unless you make a simple syrup. 

Erythritol is about 60% as sweet as sugar, and also has a clean and sugary taste. It is not toxic to dogs, nor is it good for your teeth, but I still like it a lot. You saw it earlier in that monkfruit blend, and I think it’s addition made a big difference. 

So here are some suggestions!  We hope this is helpful!  We’ll have more on eggs substitutions, etc in our upcoming posts! 

Caring for our bodies one meal at a time, 

Marianne and Terradon