Making a cake dairy free--Shortening, margarine or something else

[fairfarmhand]

https://thebestcakerecipes.com/shirley-temple-cake/#wprm-recipe-container-1463

I want to make this cake dairy free for my dd who's nursing a baby that won't tolerate any form of dairy. Would it be better to sub shortening or margarine in the recipe? 

Or something else?

[Corraleno]

I'd use sticks of vegan butter. Any type of butter substitute in a tub will have too much water in it and may be more likely to liquify rather than "cream" when you beat it with sugar.

[knitgrl]

It seems like shortening would work. You might need to adjust the quantity. Or maybe coconut oil. I'm not much of a cake baker, though.

[klmama]

I would use sticks of Earth Balance or maybe shortening. Coconut oil would likely change the flavor too much.  

[kbutton]

Oil? Shortening can definitely work, but you might want to look for recipes specifically with it (usually older recipes).

[Corraleno]

I wouldn't use oil since the recipe requires beating the butter and sugar until fluffy and then beating in the eggs. There's no baking powder or baking soda, the recipe relies on a lot of beating to aerate the batter (along with some 7-Up), so you want something with emulsifiers in it to keep it from breaking down/liquifying.

ETA: I did a quick search for the best vegan butter to use for cakes and the same 2 brands came up repeatedly: Earth Balance (sticks, not tub) and Country Crock Plant-Based Butter (also sticks). Several people said these two creamed exactly like butter, and the texture of the cakes were perfect. 

Edited May 28 by Corraleno

[Boymama5]

Earth balance butter sticks work great as a substitute. We’ve used them for cookies, cakes and other baked goods as well as for buttercream. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Earth Balance is my preference. 

[fairfarmhand]

Thanks y’all. She complains that she doesn’t get to eat so many of her favorites so I try to cook special treats for her that are dairy free. 

[*****]

I've used applesauce using the same amount instead of oil. Works well and cake came out moist.  Google it to find more information. (Make sure to get the plain, not with spices added.)

[Faith-manor]

I have had acceptable results from using Earth Balance sticks.

[JennyD]

I also bake with Earth Balance a lot instead of butter and generally it works well.  One caveat is that EB baking sticks have slightly more sodium (and taste saltier) than even salted butter, so if a recipe calls for additional salt it's a good idea to reduce/omit that.

[Green Bean]

nm.

Edited June 12 by Green Bean

[fairfarmhand]

Following up..

 

made the cake with country crock plant butter from olive oil. It was really good. I’ve not made the cake with butter before, so I can’t compare, but it was tasty!

[Resilient]

Google “wacky cake”.  
 

I ate the whole cake myself.  

[Resilient]

On 6/1/2024 at 12:05 PM, fairfarmhand said:

Following up..

 

made the cake with country crock plant butter from olive oil. It was really good. I’ve not made the cake with butter before, so I can’t compare, but it was tasty!

That’s what I used…but the avocado oil version.  

[*LC]

Oops.

I didn't notice your update until I found this old thread when checking to see if Fleischman Unsalted Margarine was still dairy free. It looks like it is based on my quick search, and that is what i used when nursing a dairy-allergic baby through toddlerhood  years ago

(This thread is old, but has a lot of good advice from The Hive)