Substitutions
The most fundamental thing to master is substituting non-offending ingredients for the foods that hate you.
Here is a (very) basic start.
Thickeners for sauces, soups, and gravies:
For creamy soups and gravies, I add garbanzo flour or fine oatmeal flour -- either adds a deep and creamy flavor and the texture is not gummy. I especially like garbanzo flour when the sauce or soup is supposed to be creamy.
Cornstarch is good for clear sauces, like Asian sauces, glazes, or fruit sauces for desserts.
Egg:
In baking, substitute 1 tsp gelatin plus 3 Tbsp water for each egg. However this doesn't work for things like custards or french toast batter because it doesn't harden with heat. There is really no substitute when you need a batter to be liquid at room temperature, then cook and harden, and stay hard. For casseroles you can sub pureed tofu, polenta, or quinoa.
Dairy:
Milk -- there are plenty of milks made from coconut, nuts, oat, soy, etc. I generally use coconut. I've made nut milks and they are indescribably yummy, but to keep up a constant flow takes an immense amount of time. Plus home-made nut milks separate instantly if you try to use them in coffee.
Yogurt -- there are plenty of soy, coconut alternatives. I find they don't fill you like a dairy yogurt, so I avoid them as meals or snacks since they are expensive and leave me hungry. I only use them when a recipe calls for yogurt.
Cheese -- I can't bring myself to try vegan cheese. Sorry. For cream cheeses I've soaked and pureed different nuts, adding salt and spices. Technically it is a vegan cream cheese, but I made it myself so I know what's in it. And I know it's not really cheese. Generally when we want cheese, we're craving salt and acidity. Try adding extra salt. For acidity, try lemon, flavored vinegars, or white wine (though only in foods or sauces you're going to cook).
Butter -- luckily, I can eat it. But if you can't, try subbing olive oil with salt for hot meals and sautéing. I use a lot of coconut oil for baking, and most of the time you don't taste it (watch out for recipes with delicate flavors). There is palm oil, and crisco, etc. And finally, if you haven't heard of GHEE, look into it. It's clarified butter, mostly used in Indian cooking, and found at Indian Markets. It has minute amounts of lactose and no casein (because it's been clarified). You could spread it on a muffin or bread -- it won't be creamy like regular butter, but when it melts it tastes like the melted butter it is!
Garlic:
How do you forgo garlic? Alas.... There is a chive called Garlic Chives which are not related to garlic, taste garlicky, but I don't know if they have casein. You can buy the seeds online if you search for them. The drawback is that you only get what you plant, and even though they are practically effortless to grow and come back each year, you only get them in the spring/summer.
Other than that, I find that garlic is a sort of grounding middle-flavor on the palate. I often use white wine or whiskey to enhance and fill that void garlic leaves. I buy it boxed or in bulk -- cheap is fine because you're cooking not drinking!
Shallots are fantastic. Buy them when they are BIG and then chop and freeze them for use later.
Leeks, green onions, and other kinds of strong onions are great for adding flavor. Also get to know all the herbs and spices you can.
Almonds -- there are so many other nuts, I just use other nuts. If you miss your favorite almond cookies terribly, try slivering pine nuts, macadamias, hazelnuts, brazil nuts, or some other lightly flavored nut and add almond extract to the recipe. It's not exact, but it tastes really interesting. Especially Pine Nuts!
Wheat for baking:
I've noticed there seems to be a kind of a war between the rice/tapioca/starch bread bakers and the garbanzo bakers. How about MIXING the two? A novel idea and it tastes better than either. Being that we can't use eggs or dairy for taste or texture, I developed my own general baking mix. You can find it HERE.
As an update (November 2011) I have experimented with lacto-fermentation using whey containing L. caseii. So far I have been able to 'pickle' garlic with no side effects. I have also been able to fridge-ferment eggs and have used them in baking with no adverse affects, however I react if I make and eat an egg's worth of scramble egg. I will post some info on lacto-fermentation soon.
That's all for now!
Here is a (very) basic start.
Thickeners for sauces, soups, and gravies:
For creamy soups and gravies, I add garbanzo flour or fine oatmeal flour -- either adds a deep and creamy flavor and the texture is not gummy. I especially like garbanzo flour when the sauce or soup is supposed to be creamy.
Cornstarch is good for clear sauces, like Asian sauces, glazes, or fruit sauces for desserts.
Egg:
In baking, substitute 1 tsp gelatin plus 3 Tbsp water for each egg. However this doesn't work for things like custards or french toast batter because it doesn't harden with heat. There is really no substitute when you need a batter to be liquid at room temperature, then cook and harden, and stay hard. For casseroles you can sub pureed tofu, polenta, or quinoa.
Dairy:
Milk -- there are plenty of milks made from coconut, nuts, oat, soy, etc. I generally use coconut. I've made nut milks and they are indescribably yummy, but to keep up a constant flow takes an immense amount of time. Plus home-made nut milks separate instantly if you try to use them in coffee.
Yogurt -- there are plenty of soy, coconut alternatives. I find they don't fill you like a dairy yogurt, so I avoid them as meals or snacks since they are expensive and leave me hungry. I only use them when a recipe calls for yogurt.
Cheese -- I can't bring myself to try vegan cheese. Sorry. For cream cheeses I've soaked and pureed different nuts, adding salt and spices. Technically it is a vegan cream cheese, but I made it myself so I know what's in it. And I know it's not really cheese. Generally when we want cheese, we're craving salt and acidity. Try adding extra salt. For acidity, try lemon, flavored vinegars, or white wine (though only in foods or sauces you're going to cook).
Butter -- luckily, I can eat it. But if you can't, try subbing olive oil with salt for hot meals and sautéing. I use a lot of coconut oil for baking, and most of the time you don't taste it (watch out for recipes with delicate flavors). There is palm oil, and crisco, etc. And finally, if you haven't heard of GHEE, look into it. It's clarified butter, mostly used in Indian cooking, and found at Indian Markets. It has minute amounts of lactose and no casein (because it's been clarified). You could spread it on a muffin or bread -- it won't be creamy like regular butter, but when it melts it tastes like the melted butter it is!
Garlic:
How do you forgo garlic? Alas.... There is a chive called Garlic Chives which are not related to garlic, taste garlicky, but I don't know if they have casein. You can buy the seeds online if you search for them. The drawback is that you only get what you plant, and even though they are practically effortless to grow and come back each year, you only get them in the spring/summer.
Other than that, I find that garlic is a sort of grounding middle-flavor on the palate. I often use white wine or whiskey to enhance and fill that void garlic leaves. I buy it boxed or in bulk -- cheap is fine because you're cooking not drinking!
Shallots are fantastic. Buy them when they are BIG and then chop and freeze them for use later.
Leeks, green onions, and other kinds of strong onions are great for adding flavor. Also get to know all the herbs and spices you can.
Almonds -- there are so many other nuts, I just use other nuts. If you miss your favorite almond cookies terribly, try slivering pine nuts, macadamias, hazelnuts, brazil nuts, or some other lightly flavored nut and add almond extract to the recipe. It's not exact, but it tastes really interesting. Especially Pine Nuts!
Wheat for baking:
I've noticed there seems to be a kind of a war between the rice/tapioca/starch bread bakers and the garbanzo bakers. How about MIXING the two? A novel idea and it tastes better than either. Being that we can't use eggs or dairy for taste or texture, I developed my own general baking mix. You can find it HERE.
As an update (November 2011) I have experimented with lacto-fermentation using whey containing L. caseii. So far I have been able to 'pickle' garlic with no side effects. I have also been able to fridge-ferment eggs and have used them in baking with no adverse affects, however I react if I make and eat an egg's worth of scramble egg. I will post some info on lacto-fermentation soon.
That's all for now!