The Simple Substitute For Baking Cake When You Run Out Of Eggs

One of the many mistakes everyone makes when baking a cake is not checking that they have all the ingredients before getting started. It can be especially alarming when eggs are the ingredient you're missing. Eggs play a crucial role in cake by acting as an emulsifier that brings together fats and water-based liquids. The yolks also add fat and protein to a cake, contributing to its richness, while the whites help to leaven the cake and bring additional protein. 

If you're in a pinch and need a substitute for eggs, you can turn to an unexpected ingredient you may have in your fridge: buttermilk. Buttermilk is incredibly versatile and is great to have on hand for many different uses, including making easy homemade crème fraîche. Buttermilk works as a substitute for eggs because it acts as a binder, with the acid in buttermilk reacting to higher-pH leaveners in the dry ingredients and helping the cake fluff up correctly. As an added benefit, buttermilk adds a nice amount of moisture to a cake. To substitute buttermilk for eggs in a cake, use ¼ cup buttermilk for each egg.

In most cases, you can make this swap without worrying, as the acidity of buttermilk won't overwhelm the cake and may instead add a nice balance. However, if you're baking a confection with lots of subtle flavors, it's worth considering the added tang that buttermilk will bring. Additionally, if you're making a recipe for the first time, it's a good idea to follow it exactly as written without making any substitutions.

If you don't have buttermilk, you can make your own substitute by combining 1 cup of whole milk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or a mild vinegar. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes, then use it as you would buttermilk. You can also use yogurt, which works in a similar way due to its acidity. Use ¼ cup yogurt to equal one egg. If those ingredients aren't an option, reach for a jar of mayonnaise. It sounds strange, but mayonnaise is made of oil and eggs, so it works very similarly to whole eggs. Use ¼ cup of mayonnaise to replace one egg, and 2-3 tablespoons of mayonnaise for each additional egg yolk (if your recipe calls for any).

If you're out of dairy-based ingredients, grab a banana. Use ¼ cup mashed banana to equal one egg when baking a cake. Keep in mind that bananas will impart their distinctive taste to your cake, so only use them if they make sense with your cake's other ingredients. Similarly, you can use canned pumpkin puree as your egg substitute, with the same ratio (¼ cup pumpkin puree for one egg). Be mindful of taste here as well, as pumpkin has a strong presence that works well with some flavor profiles (think pumpkin spice seasonings and other fall favorites) and not so much with others.