How To Replace An Egg With Flax Seed

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When I wrote about my Healthier Homemade Muffins a few weeks ago, I included in that recipe a strategy I’ve been using more and more to replace eggs in a recipe with flax seed.  I’ve learned that it’s a very easy and healthy egg substitution in recipes that still turns out good, so I thought I would share a little bit more about that method in this post.

First of all, Why?  Why replace those eggs in the recipe with flax seed?  Well, after recently watching the Forks Over Knives video, and also reading the book written by one of the doctors featured in that video, I’ve become more and more convinced that diet does in fact play a very important role in our health and resistance to diseases, and so I’ve been increasing my efforts to add more plant-based meals to our diet, and eliminate more of the animal based products.

So sorry eggs . . . Flax seed is taking over.

Now at first this may sound like a very weird and unfamiliar thing to do to a recipe, but it’s really super easy!  And I’ve been very happy that I can easily find Milled Flax Seed at my local Aldi and can pick it up with my other normal grocery shopping.

How to use ground flax seed as an egg replacer in baking recipes

How To Replace Eggs With Flax Seed

It only takes two ingredients to replace an egg with flax seed:  Water and ground flax seed.

Flax seeds are very tiny seeds that are a good plant-based source of Omega-3 fatty acids as well as being a good source of fiber.  However to make an egg replacement you do not want to use flax seeds in their whole, original state. They need to be ground up and more powdery.

How to replace an egg in baking recipes with ground flax seed

So look for a product labeled as “Milled Flax Seed” or “Ground Flax Seed” or “Flax Seed Meal”.  Any of these ground versions of flax seeds should work to make an egg replacement.

How to use ground flax seed to replace an egg in baking recipes

For each egg you want to replace in a baking recipe, you will use 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed + 2½ tablespoons of water.

Begin by placing the tablespoon of flax seed in a small bowl.  Next, add the 2½ tablespoons of water and stir things around just a little bit.

THEN, you need to let it set for a few minutes.

When you first add the water, the ground flax seed will kind of be floating around.  But as it sets a little longer, it becomes a more combined and  “goopy” substance that more closely feels like adding a soupy and goopy egg to a recipe.

How to use ground flax seed to replace an egg in baking recipes

I’ve seen instructions to put this mixture in the refrigerator, which I believe is to speed up the setting time, however I don’t really feel that’s necessary.  It already comes together quite fast. I just mix the two ingredients together, and after two or three minutes of setting on the kitchen counter, it’s ready to use.  I try to remember to make this mixture as the first thing I do in a baking recipe, and then it can set as I mix other ingredients together.  By the time I need to add in the “egg”, my flax seed mixture has been setting long enough and is ready to use.

Flax Seed Egg Replacement Measurements

If you’d like to give this method a try as you adapt some of your own favorite recipes, here are some handy measurements.  And truly, it really doesn’t require that exact of measuring of the water.  Almost all instructions for this method that you will find will have you using 1 tablespoon of flax seed for 1 egg, BUT they often differ a little bit on the water.  Some will say 2 tablespoons of water, others say 3 tablespoons.  I’ve settled on 2½.  So when calculating for replacing 2 or 3 eggs, I think rounding up or down a little bit on the water is not a problem.  Here are the calculations I use:

1 Tbl Ground Flax Seed + 2½ Tbl Water = Replacement for 1 Egg

2 Tbl Ground Flax Seed + 1/3 Cup Water = Replacement for 2 Eggs

3 Tbl Ground Flax Seed + 1/2 cup Water = Replacement for 3 Eggs

And here’s a handy chart to pin on Pinterest too:

How to replace an egg in baking recipes with ground flax seed

This is my favorite way to replace an egg in my homemade baking recipes when making healthier adjustments.  It’s easy to do and works very well.  If you’d like to make some healthier adjustments to your own recipes, give it a try and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find how well this DIY substitution will work.

How to use ground flax seed to replace an egg in baking recipes

 

 

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4 Comments

    1. I hope this can be a solution for your daughter Susan! It’s simple to do and a can easily be adapted into your baking recipes.

  1. Hi Bev, I also read the book & watched forks over knives. Been on the band wagon for a month now
    No red meat for the last year. I need more plant
    Based receipes if you have some. Thanks

    1. I hope to share more plant based recipes this year Alicia – Every week I’ve been trying to test some new recipes!