Did you know that you can develop an allergy at any age? It’s true, and my mom is a prime example. She just went through blood tests for allergies and discovered that she has a delayed allergy to eggs.

Having never had this allergy in our family before, my standard cooking approaches don’t work.

So, since my mother is a weekly visitor to my home – and stays overnight to the delight of my kids – I’ve had to adapt my food planning once again to a new allergy. I have to watch labels for new ingredients, and I’ve had to figure out how to adapt favorite recipes to the new status quo.

This has meant replacing eggs in a variety of things – but most of all, in baking.

There are more substitutions for eggs than you can shake a stick at. Here’s the list I’ve compiled so far – assume that you are replacing one egg unless otherwise noted:

1. Substitute the following for one to three eggs: 1 teaspoon baking powder plus 1 Tablespoon liquid plus 1 Tablespoon vinegar.
2. 1 teaspoon yeast dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water.
3. 1.5 Tablespoons water plus 1.5 Tablespoons oil plus 1 teaspoon baking powder.
4. Use 1 heaping Tablespoon of soy flour or cornstarch plus 2 Tablespoons of water to replace each egg in a baked product.
5. Use 1 ounce of mashed tofu in place of an egg.
6. In muffins and cookies, 1/2 mashed banana can be used instead of an egg, though it will change the flavor of the recipe somewhat.
7. For vegetarian loaves and burgers, use any of the following to bind ingredients together: tomato paste, mashed potato, moistened bread crumbs, or rolled oats, depending on other food sensitivities.
8. For baking: 2 Tablespoons of flax seed (ground) soaked in 6 Tablespoons of hot water (for 10 min) replaces two eggs.
9. 1 packet unflavored gelatin plus 2 Tablespoons warm water.
10. 2 Tablespoons cornstarch = 1 egg.
11. 2 Tablespoon arrowroot flour = 1 egg.
12. 2 Tablespoon potato starch = 1 egg.
13. 1 heaping Tablespoon soy powder + 2 Tablespoons water = 1 egg.
14. 1 Tablespoon soy milk powder + 1 Tablespoon cornstarch + 2 Tablespoons water = 1 egg.
15. 1 banana = 1 egg in cakes.
16. 1 Tablespoon milled flax seed and 3 Tablespoon water = 1 egg. (Great used in cakes).

Of course, in addition to these options, you can always buy a commercial egg replacer. Don’t mistake Egg Beaters or other products like this for a true egg replacer. Egg Beaters and such products do have egg in them.

I experimented for the first time with egg replacing when I made homemade pumpkin pie in January for a family birthday. I made a gluten-free pastry egg-free. Then I made the pumpkin pie filling without either egg or egg replacer – the only difference I saw was that I had to cook the pie longer for it to set. However, it set up beautifully.

Emboldened by this experience, I decided to try a gluten-free pumpkin cookie recipe that I have. I used a packaged egg replacer product for this recipe. It seemed to make up perfectly – but then the cookies didn’t quite cook up as expected. They are tasty, but perhaps a bit more “doughy” than I would have liked.

With that in mind, I’ll have to think harder about which egg substitution to use with which recipe. I suspect some work better than others depending on what you’re making.