Want to veganize a favorite baking recipe? Start with what you’re making.
Veganizing baking can take more thought than swapping one ingredient. Traditional baked goods may rely on eggs, butter, milk, buttermilk, cream, sour cream, yogurt, cream cheese, gelatin, honey, chocolate, and frostings. Some substitutions are nearly one-to-one; others affect moisture, structure, lift, binding, richness, browning, tenderness, and flavor. The goal of this guide is to help you understand WHAT each animal-derived ingredient is doing before you replace it.
Find your baked good below and start with the recommended approach \u2014 then adjust for your recipe. Baking is about function, so the swap depends on what the original ingredients were doing.
Best starting choice: Vegan butter + an egg replacer matched to the job
Also try: Flax egg for binding
Cookie recipes vary; the original egg may add binding, moisture, and structure.
Best starting choice: Vegan butter or oil + flax egg or commercial egg replacer
Also try: Applesauce where appropriate
Brownies are forgiving, but substitutions change whether the result is fudgy or cakey.
Best starting choice: Plant milk + vegan butter or oil + an egg replacer for lift
Also try: Aquafaba or commercial replacer
Cakes rely heavily on eggs for structure and lift, so choose the egg replacement carefully.
Best starting choice: Same approach as cake — match the replacer to structure and lift
Also try: Scale a cake recipe down
Cupcakes bake faster than cakes, so check them early.
Best starting choice: Plant milk + vegan butter or oil + flax egg, applesauce, or a replacer
Also try: Vegan yogurt for moisture
Muffins are forgiving and take simple binders well.
Best starting choice: Plant milk + flax egg or a leavening/binding approach
Also try: Baking soda + acid for lift
Pancakes need lift and a little binding; they rarely need a complex egg replacer.
Best starting choice: Plant milk + an egg replacement + vegan fat
Also try: Extra leavening for crispness
Waffles need structure and crispness; a little extra lift helps.
Best starting choice: Vegan butter + vegan buttermilk
Also try: Plant milk + lemon juice or vinegar
Plant milk plus acid recreates the acidity buttermilk contributes to lift and tenderness.
Best starting choice: Vegan butter or vegetable shortening
Also try: Vegan baking stick for flakiness
The main problem is replacing solid dairy fat while keeping the crust flaky.
Best starting choice: Vegan cream cheese, or a cashew/tofu filling made for cheesecake
Also try: A recipe already developed vegan
Cheesecake structure is hard to retrofit — use a recipe built to be vegan.
Best starting choice: Vegan butter + powdered sugar
Also try: Vegan cream-cheese-style frosting
Beat vegan butter with powdered sugar and a little plant milk for classic buttercream.
Best starting choice: Commercial vegan whipping cream
Also try: Coconut cream where its flavor fits
Only products made to whip hold peaks; ordinary plant milk won’t.
Best starting choice: Aquafaba
Also try: Cream of tartar + sugar
Aquafaba whips to stiff peaks and bakes into meringue.
Best starting choice: Plant milk + a starch (cornstarch or tapioca)
Also try: Silken tofu depending on the recipe
Starch sets custards and puddings that eggs or dairy once thickened.
Best starting choice: Simple swaps for milk, butter, eggs, or honey
Also try: Many breads are naturally vegan
Most lean breads are already vegan; rich breads just need milk and butter replaced.
For each animal-derived baking ingredient, the honest options, what they\u2019re best for, and what to watch out for. Where we have a dedicated hub (Eggs, Dairy, Cheese), we link you there for the deep dive instead of repeating it.
There is no universal egg replacement — eggs bind, add moisture, lift, and structure depending on the recipe.
Vegan options: Flax egg, chia egg, aquafaba, applesauce, banana, silken tofu, commercial egg replacer, or baking soda + acid.
Best for: Match the replacer to the job: flax for binding, aquafaba for lift and foam, commercial replacer for structure.
Watch out for: One swap won’t do everything — the type of baked good decides which works.
Butter adds fat, flavor, moisture, and helps browning and tenderness.
Vegan options: Vegan butter, vegan baking sticks, neutral oil, or vegetable shortening.
Best for: Vegan baking sticks for pastry and cookies; oil for moist cakes and brownies.
Watch out for: Tub spreads are higher in water than sticks and can change texture in pastry.
Milk adds moisture plus a little protein and fat.
Vegan options: Unsweetened soy, oat, almond, or cashew milk.
Best for: Soy or oat for structure and browning; oat for a tender crumb.
Watch out for: Use unsweetened, unflavored milk — vanilla milk ruins neutral bakes.
Buttermilk adds moisture and acid that reacts with leavening for lift and tenderness.
Vegan options: Unsweetened plant milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar per cup, rested 5 minutes.
Best for: Biscuits, pancakes, muffins, and cakes that rely on the acid-baking soda reaction.
Watch out for: Don’t drop the acid — the leavening system depends on it.
Heavy cream adds richness, moisture, and body, and can be whipped.
Vegan options: Plant-based heavy cream, cashew cream, or coconut cream where the flavor fits.
Best for: Rich fillings, ganache, and cream pies; whipping only with a product made to whip.
Watch out for: Thin plant milk is too light; coconut cream adds coconut flavor.
Sour cream adds moisture, fat, and tang.
Vegan options: Vegan sour cream, or vegan yogurt thinned slightly.
Best for: Coffee cakes, quick breads, and recipes that use sour cream for moisture and tang.
Watch out for: Some brands split at a hard boil; taste for tang before using.
Yogurt adds moisture, a little fat, and tang.
Vegan options: Unsweetened vegan yogurt (soy, oat, coconut, or cashew).
Best for: Muffins, cakes, and quick breads for moisture and a tender crumb.
Watch out for: Flavored or coconut yogurt carries unwanted notes — pick a neutral base.
Cream cheese adds richness, tang, and structure in fillings and frostings.
Vegan options: Commercial vegan cream cheese, or a recipe-specific cashew or tofu filling.
Best for: Cheesecake fillings, frostings, and rich fillings.
Watch out for: Brands vary a lot in tang and stiffness — pick one suited to the recipe.
Honey is a liquid sweetener with moisture and floral flavor.
Vegan options: Maple syrup, agave, or other vegan liquid sweeteners.
Best for: Recipes that use honey for sweetness and moisture.
Watch out for: Sweetness and water content differ — not always a 1:1 swap; adjust liquid if needed.
Gelatin sets desserts by forming a protein gel.
Vegan options: Agar-agar, a plant-based gelling agent.
Best for: No-bake cheesecakes, panna cotta-style desserts, and gelled fillings.
Watch out for: Agar does NOT behave like gelatin — it sets firmer and faster; use a recipe-specific conversion.
Some dark and semi-sweet chocolates are vegan; others contain milk.
Vegan options: Vegan-labeled dark or semi-sweet chocolate, cocoa powder, or vegan chocolate chips.
Best for: Any recipe calling for chocolate — once you’ve confirmed it’s dairy-free.
Watch out for: CHECK LABELS — milk fat, milk powder, and butterfat show up in many bars.
Successful vegan baking is usually about replacing the JOB the animal-derived ingredient performs \u2014 not simply replacing the ingredient by appearance. Identify the function, then pick the option that does it.
Flax, chia, commercial egg replacer, starches
These hold the dough or batter together when an egg’s binding is removed.
Plant milk, applesauce, vegan yogurt, banana where appropriate
These replace the liquid eggs, milk, and dairy contribute.
Vegan butter, oil, coconut cream, nut-based ingredients
Fat carries flavor and tenderness; replace what butter or cream brought.
Baking soda + acid, baking powder, aquafaba, commercial egg replacer
These create the air bubbles that make baked goods rise.
Flour/starch balance, commercial egg replacer, chickpea flour or binders
These give the crumb its backbone when eggs are gone.
Vegan butter, oil, plant yogurt, other fats and moisture
Fat and moisture soften the crumb; replacing them keeps baked goods tender.
Lemon juice, vinegar, vegan buttermilk, vegan yogurt
Acid reacts with baking soda for lift and balances flavor.
Aquafaba, commercial vegan whipping products
These trap air into a stable foam for meringue and light batters.
Cornstarch, tapioca, arrowroot, agar where appropriate
These set custards, puddings, and fillings that eggs or dairy once thickened.
For the full system, see our Vegan Baking Tips and Vegan Egg Replacer.
A baking-focused comparison \u2014 each replacer rated High, Medium, or Low for how well it fits common baked goods and jobs. For the full egg guide, see Veganize Eggs below.
For scrambling, omelets, and the full binder/lift/foam breakdown, our dedicated Eggs hub goes deeper than this baking overview.
A baking-focused comparison of the dairy swaps you\u2019ll reach for most. For milk, cream, butter, yogurt, and sour cream in cooking and coffee, see Veganize Dairy below.
For milk, heavy cream, butter, buttermilk, sour cream, yogurt, whipped cream, and creamer across all cooking \u2014 not just baking \u2014 our Dairy hub has the full breakdown.
For each classic, the best approach and how to think about it. Where we already have a real recipe that fits, we link to it \u2014 otherwise, here\u2019s how to make the swap yourself.
Best: Vegan butter + flax egg
Our Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies use vegan butter and a flax-style binder for classic chew.
Try this recipe:Best: Vegan butter or oil + flax egg or commercial replacer
Brownies are forgiving; our Fudgy Vegan Brownies lean rich and fudgy.
Try this recipe:Best: Plant milk + vinegar + oil + egg replacer
Use soy milk with a little vinegar, oil for moisture, and a commercial replacer for structure.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant milk + vegan butter + commercial egg replacer
Vanilla cakes rely on eggs for lift and structure — use a commercial replacer or aquafaba.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Same as cake, scaled down
Use your cake approach; cupcakes bake faster, so check early.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan cream cheese or cashew/tofu filling
Use a recipe developed vegan — cheesecake structure is hard to retrofit.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan butter or shortening crust
Swap dairy butter for a vegan baking stick or shortening; the fruit filling is naturally vegan.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Coconut milk or cashew cream custard
Use full-fat coconut milk or cashew cream with cornstarch for a set custard.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant milk + flax egg or binder
Our Vegan Banana Pancakes show a simple plant-milk, no-egg approach.
Try this recipe:Best: Plant milk + egg replacer + vegan fat
Add a little extra lift (baking soda + acid or aquafaba) for crisp waffles.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant milk + flax egg or yogurt
Our Fluffy Vegan Blueberry Muffins use plant milk and a simple binder.
Try this recipe:Best: Plant milk + mashed banana + oil
Banana bread is forgiving — the bananas add moisture and binding on their own.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan butter + plant milk dough
Use a vegan baking stick for the dough and filling; enriched yeast doughs veganize easily.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan butter + vegan buttermilk
Cut cold vegan baking stick into the flour, and use plant milk + vinegar for buttermilk.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant milk + egg replacer
Cake donuts take a commercial replacer well; yeast donuts just need plant milk and vegan butter.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan buttercream
Beat vegan baking stick with powdered sugar and a little plant milk for classic buttercream.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant-based heavy cream or coconut cream filling
Thicken a coconut or cashew cream custard with cornstarch for the filling.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Plant milk + cornstarch
Thicken soy or oat milk with cornstarch; silken tofu also makes silky puddings.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Aquafaba + sugar
Whip aquafaba with cream of tartar and sugar to stiff peaks; bake low and slow.
Recipe coming soon \u2014 use the approach aboveBest: Vegan brownie + vegan ice cream
Pair our Fudgy Vegan Brownies with a dairy-free ice cream and a drizzle.
Try this recipe:Some swaps are nearly direct; others need recipe-specific adjustments. Knowing the difference saves a lot of failed batches.
Recipe context still matters \u2014 but these are the easiest places to start.
These may need recipe-specific adjustments \u2014 or a recipe already developed vegan.
A honest note: Replacing three or four major structural ingredients in a complicated conventional recipe can be much less predictable than starting with a recipe already developed to be vegan. When a recipe leans heavily on eggs, laminated butter, or a delicate custard, a tested vegan version is usually the safer starting point.
Start simple. Veganize forgiving foods first — cookies, brownies, muffins, pancakes, and quick breads — before attempting technical foods like soufflé-style desserts, complex custards, laminated pastry, or highly egg-dependent cakes. Replacing three or four major structural ingredients in a complicated conventional recipe is much less predictable than starting with a recipe already developed to be vegan.
One of the easiest substitutions in many baking recipes.
Often an approachable replacement for dairy butter.
A useful beginner option for binding in many cookies, muffins, pancakes, and similar recipes.
Most vegan baking failures come from treating all swaps as interchangeable. Here\u2019s what goes wrong and what to do instead.
Fix: Match the replacer to the job: flax for binding, aquafaba for lift, commercial replacer for structure.
Fix: Keep an unsweetened, unflavored carton for baking; vanilla ruins neutral bakes.
Fix: Sticks and tubs differ in fat and water — read the label and match the product to the recipe.
Fix: For pastry and laminated dough, use a vegan baking stick, not a soft tub spread.
Fix: Ask what each ingredient does before swapping; replace the function, not just the name.
Fix: Banana is assertive — use it where banana flavor is wanted, not as a neutral egg replacer.
Fix: Aquafaba excels at lift and foam; it’s not a universal binder or structure builder.
Fix: Baking soda needs acid; baking powder doesn’t. Match the leavener to what’s in the batter.
Fix: If a recipe relied on buttermilk or sour cream, add lemon juice or vinegar to keep the leavening working.
Fix: Mix until just combined; overmixing develops gluten and toughens the crumb, especially in lower-fat vegan batters.
Fix: Change one variable at a time so you can tell what worked and what didn’t.
Fix: Check labels — many dark and semi-sweet bars contain milk fat or butterfat.
Fix: Agar sets firmer and faster; use a recipe-specific agar conversion, not a 1:1 swap.
Bookmark this. For each ingredient a traditional recipe might call for, the first swap to try and the pitfall to avoid.
Try this first: Depends on function — flax for binding, aquafaba for lift
Watch out for: There is no universal egg replacement.
Try this first: Unsweetened soy or oat milk
Watch out for: Sweetened or vanilla milk in neutral or savory recipes.
Try this first: Vegan baking stick
Watch out for: Tub spreads are higher in water — avoid for pastry.
Try this first: Unsweetened plant milk + lemon juice or vinegar
Watch out for: Removing the acid the leavening depends on.
Try this first: Plant-based heavy cream or cashew cream
Watch out for: Thin milk is too light; coconut adds flavor.
Try this first: Vegan sour cream
Watch out for: Brands vary in tang; some split when boiled.
Try this first: Unsweetened vegan yogurt
Watch out for: Flavored or coconut yogurt carries unwanted notes.
Try this first: Vegan cream cheese
Watch out for: Brands vary in stiffness and tang.
Try this first: Maple syrup or agave
Watch out for: Sweetness and water content differ — adjust liquid.
Try this first: Agar-agar
Watch out for: Agar sets firmer and faster — use a recipe-specific conversion.
Identify each animal ingredient’s job — bind, lift, moisture, fat, tang — then replace the function, and change one variable at a time.
It depends on the job: flax or chia for binding, aquafaba for lift and foam, commercial replacer for structure, applesauce or banana for moisture. See Veganize Eggs.
A flax egg or commercial replacer — cookies mainly need binding and a little moisture.
A commercial egg replacer or aquafaba — cakes need lift and structure, not just binding.
Unsweetened soy or oat milk in most recipes; always unflavored.
Soy or oat — their protein and body give reliable browning and structure.
Yes, in most recipes; use a baking stick for pastry and cookies where the fat-to-water ratio matters.
A vegan baking stick (higher fat, less water); avoid soft tub spreads for pastry.
Stir 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar into 1 cup unsweetened plant milk and rest 5 minutes.
Vegan sour cream, or vegan yogurt thinned slightly, in coffee cakes and quick breads.
Plant-based heavy cream, cashew cream, or coconut cream where its flavor fits.
Commercial vegan cream cheese, or a recipe-specific cashew or tofu filling for cheesecake.
Maple syrup or agave; sweetness and water content differ, so adjust liquid if needed.
Agar-agar — but it sets firmer and faster, so use a recipe-specific conversion, not 1:1.
Some dark and semi-sweet chocolates are vegan; others contain milk. Always check the label.
Usually the egg replacement lacked lift or structure — try a commercial replacer or aquafaba, and don’t overmix.
Often too much moisture or a too-soft butter — use a baking stick and chill the dough if needed.
Many yes, but highly egg-dependent or laminated recipes may need a recipe already developed vegan.
For complicated, egg-heavy, or laminated recipes, start with a recipe already developed vegan; for simple recipes, converting works well.
Once you\u2019ve got beef sorted, pick the next food you want to make vegan.
Hearty ground-beef swaps and savory, meaty texture
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Learn howSmoky, crispy bacon from tempeh, coconut, and mushrooms
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Learn howMelty shreds, grated parmesan, and creamy sauces
Learn howBind, scramble, and bake without eggs
Learn howMilk, cream, butter, and yogurt alternatives
Learn how
