Living (& Cooking) Dairy-Free: My Go-To Subs

As many of you may have noticed, my recipes are almost all dairy-free; this is because I developed an allergy about 2 years ago and have had to cut almost all dairy from my diet.

Do I miss it? Most assuredly. But my stomach is ever so much happier.

What are my go-to dairy substitutes?

Soy milk: For recipes that call for dairy in order to make a dish richer and creamier (like soups, although allow cooling to avoid curdling).

Rice milk: It's thinner than regular milk and not great for baking, but it's very nice in smoothies (blend together rice milk and frozen fruit of your choice). Before I got used to drinking my coffee black, this was also my go-to coffee whitener.

Almond milk: I find it a little bitter to drink plain (although my nephew loves it), but it's great in cereal. Not too good for cooking as it tends to separate easily.

Non-dairy yogurt, cream cheese, & sour cream: I wouldn't eat any of these plain, but they can sub for themselves (i.e. I've made really good non-dairy cheesecake with fake cream cheese and sour cream, banana bread with non-dairy yogurt).

Applesauce: The creaminess dairy adds to baked goods can be somewhat mimicked using applesauce (it's also a great sub for oil or butter, although it will also increase density).

The cheapest place I've found to buy most of these items (at least in my area) is Trader Joe's, although you can sometimes find them on sale at other stores for a good price (usually located in the "organic" or "health food" section).