The Aquafaba Advantage

I was a skeptic, but then I tried it. I substituted aquafaba for the eggs in my Carrot Bread recipe. The results? A moist, flavorful snack that’s easy to prepare and ideal for vegans and anyone else who wishes to avoid eggs. Perfect for Rosh HaShanah.

In case you’re not familiar with aquafaba, it refers to the liquid found in canned legumes (or the water leftover from cooking dried legumes). Although all beans qualify, the liquid from chickpeas works best. When beaten with a whisk, chick pea liquid efficiently traps air and gives baked goods both structure and also a light and tender crumb.

To use aquafaba for quickbreads, drain the chickpeas (use the beans for other purposes), making sure you scrape the residue at the bottom of the can. You can use the liquid as is, but from my experience it’s better if you reduce it slowly over heat until it becomes the consistency of egg white. Use about three tablespoons of the liquid in place of each egg.

Carrot Aquafaba Bread

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. grated fresh lemon peel

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

2/3 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup aquafaba

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 1/2 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup golden raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 ½-inch-by-4 ½-inch loaf pan. Mix the flour, baking powder, lemon peel, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl. Set aside. Beat the sugar and vegetable oil in the bowl of an electric mixer at medium speed for 2-3 minutes, or until well blended. Whisk the aquafaba until slightly foamy, then fold it in. Add the dry ingredients and mix the ingredients gently until well blended. Stir in the lemon juice. Fold in the carrots and raisins. Spoon the batter into the loaf pan. Bake for about 50 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a rack to cool completely.

Makes one loaf.

Ronnie Fein is a cookbook author, food writer and cooking teacher in Stamford. She is the author of “The Modern Kosher Kitchen” and “Hip Kosher.” Visit her food blog, Kitchen Vignettes, at www.ronniefein.com, friend on Facebook at RonnieVailFein, Twitter at @RonnieVFein, Instagram at RonnieVFein.