Easy Veganuary Habits and Hacks: Eggs

I’ve always had a love-hate relationship with eggs. As a toddler I loved hard-boiled egg and soliders (or shoulders as I would call them). But never scrambled eggs, fried eggs were gross and it was only throughout the last year of uni that I discovered poached eggs. So ‘giving up’ eggs when I learnt about the cruel conditions in which chickens are kept and the egg industry was simple. In my mind, there was no other option.

I know some people love eggs, any which way, but I’d like to highlight a few delicious alternatives out there.

Baking

Baking without eggs can seem very daunting to start with, but fear not, going vegan does not mean you will never be able to enjoy your favourite bakes again. From delicious Carrot Cakes to Chocolate Brownies, Pancakes, French toast and everything in between… It’s time to get creative and use some ingredients you perhaps haven’t tried before:

• Mashed banana or applesauce: in a lot of cases you can swap out one egg for one small mashed banana to bind the mix, or a similar amount of pure applesauce (about ¼ cup). Both will add moisture, too.
• Chia or flax eggs: chia seeds or ground flaxseed are pretty interchangeable and when mixed with water and left to form a gel, they make the perfect cake binder. 1 tbsp chia/flaxseed with 3 tbsp water equivalates to one egg.
• Avocado: yes, you read that correctly. About ¼ cup of mashed avocado can be used in bakes (beware of a slight colour tinge!).
• Aquafaba (or the water from a can of chickpeas): this can be used in different ways but usually a few tablespoons of aquafaba whipped with a whisk will replace a whipped egg. You can make delicious macaroons and meringues this way!
• VeganEgg: I’ve never used this before but is a direct egg replacer and comes in, what appears to be, an egg box.
• Mashed pumpkin, squash or sweet potato: these all make great alternatives for cakes, muffins, and we have all heard of those sweet potato brownies! Perfectly sweet and moist – see my Pumpkin Spiced Breakfast Cookies.

When you want something ‘eggy’

There is no easy replacement for a poached or fried egg (some restaurants have some cool replicas, like the Wagamama vegan bowl with ‘poached egg’) but for scrambled eggs, there are some great options:

• Tofu: mashed up or ‘scrambled’ extra firm tofu, mixed with turmeric (for colour), nutritional yeast (for a cheesy tang) and fried off like a scramble is a great topper for toast.
• Egg-Mayo sandwich filler: use mashed extra-firm tofu mixed with vegan mayo for a tasty sarnie, adding spring onions, salt and pepper for extra flavour. Take a look at my Egg-Less Egg Mayo.
• Black sea salt (kala namak): add this pink salt to your scrambled tofu to add a very eggy taste and smell. It’s a dream – just be careful as you only need a pinch. I got mine from amazon and am very impressed.
• VeganEgg: scramble away for a quick breakfast.
• Chickpeas: after saving the brine for aquafaba bakes, roughly mash chickpeas with a fork then either fry off with spices for a breakfast scramble, or mix with vegan mayo and onion for a faux-egg sandwich.

Have you tried any of the egg-alternatives mentioned above, or perhaps you have some new options to share? I would love to hear from you, please leave a comment below and/or tag me in your egg-free creations on Instagram, I’m @nourishing.amy and use the hashtag #nourishingamy.