Many of your favorite cookie recipes call for eggs, milk, cream and butter. However, if you either have certain dietary restrictions like a vegan diet or allergies, it can be hard to enjoy dessert. When you are told to not have something, your desire for that item grows. Luckily, with a few substitutions, you can still enjoy those cookies.
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Replacing Milk
When the recipe calls for milk, ditch the regular milk that comes from the cow. Try some nut or seed milk instead. You can easily make such milk too. Just simply soak your nuts or seeds for several hours, drain and rinse and then you just blend with water. The more water you use, the thinner the milk will be. Therefore, the thicker you want your milk to be, the less water you will need. And, usually there is a 1-to-1ratio in baked goods as well, so your cookies wont suffer. If you don’t want to make your own milk, you can just head over to the milk aisle in your local grocery store and pick up some almond milk, cashew milk or coconut milk.
Replacing Butter
Butter is used in cookie recipes to give the baked treats body and texture, along with a little bit of sweetness. Dairy-free margarine, such as Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread, works well in replacing butter and can even be used in a 1-to-1 ratio. Try and find a dairy-free margarine with a low water content and high fat content to make sure your cookies have the right texture in the end. Oil is another great substitute for butter; however, when the recipe calls for a certain measurement of butter, use half the amount of oil so your cookies do not end up tasting oily. Coconut oil is solid when at room temperature, but will melt when heated and gives the cookies a delicious sweet flavor. Cooking oil, such as canola, soybean or olive oil, can be used in place of butter as well. But, just make sure that you decrease the amount the recipe calls for by ¾.
Replacing Cream
Instead of using cream, you can use coconut milk or coconut cream. Sometimes using homemade milk does not quite add up to the necessary texture of the cookie. You need something thicker and creamier. Coconut milk is quite thick on its own because it is a blend of coconut milk and water. It adds richness to dairy-free desserts. And, coconut cream is even thicker! Coconut cream is actually the cream that rises to the top of chilled coconut milk. It is a great way to get the perfect frosting as well. You can just whip it with your favorite flavoring of choice.
Replacing Chocolate
Although chocolate is naturally dairy-free, manufacturers add in dairy for better marketability and that causes a problem for those with dietary restrictions. Most of us, however, find that completely natural cacao chocolate is way too dark for nibbling or putting into cookies. Instead, we buy dark or semi-sweet chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate. Thankfully, it may take a few looks around the aisle, but grocers do provide some dairy-free options to your favorite type of chocolate. Some brands include the following: Enjoy Life Foods, Taza Chocolate, Premium Chocolatiers and Charm School Chocolate.
Replacing Buttermilk
Buttermilk can be whipped up quickly by “souring” regular milk. Fortunately, milk alternatives can be “soured” as well to produce a buttermilk alternative. It can even be substituted for the real thing by using a 1-to-1 ratio. All you have to do is add in a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to one cup of the non-dairy milk of your choice. Let it sit for five minutes and then add it to your recipe. It may or may not “curdle,” but the buttermilk still serves its purpose in recipes.
With these substitutions, you can still enjoy cookies. Whether it is celebrating a special occasion or just a regular Tuesday, cookies put a smile on people’s faces and with cookies from Cookie Bouquets, your taste buds will surely thank you!