Dairy-free/vegan alternatives for cooking/baking

You are lactose intolerant or have gone vegan but your favorite recipe calls for ingredients like milk, sour cream, cream cheese, or yogurt? No worries, choose from the many (surprisingly tasty) dairy-free/vegan alternatives at your grocery stores that can stand in for each of those ingredients:

  • Substitute plain, unsweetened soy, almond, or coconut yogurt 1:1 for sour cream or yogurt in recipes, or for cream cheese; reduce any liquid in the recipe by 1 to 2 tablespoons per 1/2 cup liquid
    • Substitute plant-based half & half (like Ripple brand) 1:1 for light cream or regular half & half in caramel and sauces recipes
    • Substitute the top half (the thickest part) of a can of coconut milk 1:1 for heavy cream or whipping cream in pie, scones and biscuits recipes, or a well-shaken canned coconut milk 1:1 for regular milk in enriched bread recipes
    • Substitute vegan butter (like Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks), coconut oil, canola oil, vegetable shortening 1:1 for butter in pie crust, pastry dough, and cakes (Note: they may be a slight flavor and textural difference)