Baking with Flax

Flax seed can be a healthy substitute or addition to many baked goods. It comes in many forms (whole seeds, milled, etc.) and can be found in most grocery stores. I use Hodgson Mills milled flax seed, but there are all sorts of brands and types available. I keep it in a small container in the freezer, with the substitution amounts taped to it so I don't forget them. I use it as an egg substitute as well as a healthy addition to breads. It can also be used to replace fats and oils.

As an egg substitute: In a small bowl, mix 1 Tablespoon of milled flax with 3 Tablespoons of water. Then add it to the wet ingredients of whatever you are baking. Sometimes it changes the texture of what you're baking, but I recommend trying it at least once per recipe. Something I like about using flax, besides the health benefits, is that it has a longer shelf-life than eggs. With flax on hand I don't have to worry about whether I've run out of eggs!

As a fat or oil substitute: 3 Tablespoons of milled flax seed can replace 1 Tablespoon of fat or oil. This is what I've heard, but I have not yet tried it because I usually replace fats and oils with unsweetened applesauce.

As a healthy addition to baked goods: Through a quick internet search, I've found out that when baking a recipe that calls for 4+ cups of flour, 1/4 cup of milled flax seed can be substituted for 1/4 cup of the flour. I especially do this when making wheat bread. It not only adds to the healthiness of the recipe, but it also adds great texture!

Some other healthy substitutes and additions are applesauce and chia. For more information on any of these I recommend researching them on the internet. There are a vast amount of resources with recipes and health info about them.