Egg prices are through the roof yet again, and every time I go to the grocery store, I feel like I need to sell an arm and a leg just to buy a dozen eggs.
But I still wanted brownies, cakes, and sweet treats, so I scoured the interwebs and found some popular egg alternatives. Then, like a mad scientist with a sweet tooth, I baked them all, and here’s how it went.
Here is what I used
- Applesauce
- Baking soda and vinegar
- Aquafaba – which translates to “bean water” – or the liquid from a can of chickpeas
- Flax seeds and water
To start, I used the same boxed triple chocolate brownie mix for each batch, as well as two tablespoons of water and half a cup of oil.
The box called for two eggs, and that’s where I changed things up.
Here is what I found out
Applesauce: I used ½ cup of applesauce instead of the eggs.
Verdict: It was like I whispered “apple” during the mixing process. There was a slight hint of apple, but not enough to say I didn’t want to eat this. The brownies were moist but extremely dense, which makes sense because they took double the amount of time to bake than a regular batch of brownies.
Baking Soda & Vinegar: I used 2 teaspoons of baking soda plus 2 tablespoons of white vinegar
Verdict: If you want to feel like a mad scientist, this is the way to go. You mix the baking soda and vinegar together first, and then it bubbles like taking an Alka-Seltzer. The first time I did this, it did not go well. It was more like a brownie Play-Doh, and I had to use my hands to press it into the pan. After successfully overcooking it and undercooking it at the same time, I scrapped that batch and tried it again. The second time was a little better. The brownies rose quickly, getting puffy on top, and were the most cake-like-looking brownie. There was a weird tang to it, but it wasn’t bad if you’re into tangy vinegar sort of thing. Cooking-wise, this was the shortest cooking time, taking only about 18 minutes in the oven.
Flax Seeds: I used 2 tablespoons of flax seeds and 6 tablespoons of water, then let that sit for about 10 minutes.
Verdict: I will say when the flax seeds were sitting in the water, I was getting a little suspicious as it turned into this weird goo situation, but I trusted the process, and it didn’t go well. There was a lot of liquid, and I had to dab the liquid off the brownies when they were done. This brownie took forever to bake, about 40 minutes. It was dense and chewy but more like a protein bar trying to be a brownie. It wasn’t bad, but not great.
Aquafaba: I used a ½ cup
Verdict: I don’t know what sorcery this is, but the texture was shockingly close to real brownies, and there’s no bean-y aftertaste. If you don’t know what aquafaba means, it translates to “bean water,” which is the water found in a can of chickpeas. Yes, it’s weird, but surprisingly it works. It did take a while in the oven, 45 minutes to be exact, but the texture and taste were better than expected.
As for the winner, if I had to crown one, I would choose the aquafaba one, closely followed by the applesauce. Honestly, if you throw in enough chocolate, you can fool yourself into thinking any of these could be the real deal.
Moral of the story, the price of eggs won’t stop us from making sweet treats, but it can make the adventure a little weirder.
Happy baking everyone!
