If you buy a cake mix and look at the instructions on the package, they will usually tell you to add either two or three eggs, depending on the mix. Some call for egg whites only.
In any case, eggs seem to be a really common ingredient in cake mixes. But what if you don’t have eggs on hand? What if you are allergic or sensitive to eggs? Can you make a cake without them? Yes! There are lots of good egg substitute options for every situation.
What happens if you don’t put eggs in a cake?
You might wonder what will happen if you just don’t add eggs to the cake mix. Maybe you mix it up with just the oil and the water that the box calls for. Well, your results won’t be that amazing. Eggs work as a binder. They bind all of the other ingredients together and give the cake a nice, even texture. Without eggs, your cake won’t hold up. It will be really crumbly, and not in a good way. It might even fall apart when you take it out of the pan.
Obviously, you want your cake to hold together. So if you don’t want to add eggs, you have to add something else that will take the place of the eggs and similarly work as a binder.
What can you substitute for eggs in a box cake mix?
Luckily, there are a couple of good options, and you probably have at least one of them on hand already.
1. Vinegar and baking soda
You may have mixed vinegar and baking soda together before to make a foamy mixture. These two ingredients do a similar thing when used in a cake mix as an egg substitute. They make the cake nice and fluffy as an egg would, and the foamy reaction also helps hold the cake together. For one cake mix, you can use 3 teaspoons of baking soda and 3 tablespoons of vinegar in the place of 3 eggs. In other words, 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of vinegar are equal to one egg.
2. Plain yogurt
Yogurt will also help bind a cake together and make it fluffy. You can use ¼ cup of yogurt in place of one egg. This means that for the average cake mix, you need to use ¾ cup yogurt. If you would rather stay away from dairy, you can use soy yogurt instead. It works about the same.
3. Unsweetened applesauce
This might be the healthiest egg substitute. It adds some fiber and vitamins to your cake! It does make the cake a little heavier than eggs, but it will hold the cake together — and the results are still delicious. You need ¼ cup of unsweetened applesauce per egg that the cake mix calls for.
4. Flaxseed
Flaxseeds are tiny seeds that are really high in a nutrient called soluble fiber. Soluble fiber absorbs water and works really well as a binding agent, just like eggs. It has a lot of other advantages as an egg substitute, too. It’s vegan, so you can use it when making a cake for people who do not want to eat animal products. Flaxseed is also a really good source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are healthy for your heart.
Using flaxseed in a cake mix can be a little bit challenging, though. You have to grind it up first. You can do this using a mortar and pestle or a small coffee grinder. Then, mix 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed and 3 tablespoons of water for every egg that the cake mix calls for. Let this mixture sit together for about 10 minutes so the flaxseed gets moistened before adding it to the cake mix.
Can you use milk instead of eggs in a cake?
Milk is not the best egg substitute. It’s pretty liquidy, and it is not as high in fiber or protein as the egg substitutes discussed above. But if you’re in a pinch, then making a cake with milk in place of the eggs is better than nothing.
How much milk should you use? About 3 tablespoons per egg tend to be about right. You can add an extra teaspoon or two of oil to the cake recipe, too, which will help make the cake a little richer even without eggs. Keep in mind, though, that a cake made with milk in place of eggs is going to be very delicate and may fall apart easily. Be really careful as you take it out of the pan.
So, can you make a cake mix without eggs? The answer is yes, as long as you have something else on hand to act as a binder. Milk will work in a pinch, but there are better choices — like baking soda and vinegar, or flaxseed. Use what you have on hand, and enjoy your cake.
