When it’s Thanksgiving and your family will be over to enjoy a big meal in just a few hours, there’s really no time to panic — even if, halfway through a sweet potato casserole recipe, you realize you’ve already used your last stick of butter.
So don’t panic — replace. Your fridge and pantry hold a cornucopia of suitable ingredients that can stand in during an emergency, and in all likelihood only you will be able to tell the difference.
Here, FEMAIL has rounded up some of the best and most depended-upon substitutions for common Thanksgiving ingredients to help prepare a meal your guests will gobble up.
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Happy Thanksgiving! The American holiday falls on November 23 this year
OUT OF: BUTTER
REPLACE WITH: SHORTENING, OIL, APPLE SAUCE, AVOCADO, YOGURT or PUMPKIN PUREE
Nearly everything in a Thanksgiving feast uses butter, so it’s not hard to imagine running short after churning out the mashed potatoes, stuffing, and pecan pie. The good news: There are a ton of ways to make due.
Replacing it with oil can usually be an easy swap: For one cup of butter, try just under a cup of vegetable oil, 3/4 cup of olive oil, or a whole cup of coconut oil.
For baking, it’s usually better to stick to shortening (at a 1-to-1 ratio), since oil can make cakes soggy.
Another baking trick is to cut the butter measurement in half — and make up the other half with unsweetened apple sauce, avocado, full-fat Greek yogurt, or pumpkin puree. Bonus: These will also make recipes a bit healthier!
(Feel like going the other route? Bacon fat can also be subbed in for butter, though it will definitely change the flavor of what you’re cooking in a major way.)
OUT OF: EGGS
REPLACE WITH: VEGETABLE OIL AND BAKING POWDER, FLAXSEED MEAL, BANANA or APPLESAUCE
If you find yourself in a bind and really need one more egg for your pumpkin bread, or biscuits, there may be something in your kitchen to help.
One egg can be subbed with a mixture of 1 1/2 tbs. vegetable oil, 1 1/2 tbs. water, and 1 tsp. baking powder. Otherwise, stir 1 tbs. flaxseed meal with 3 tbs. water and let it thicken.
Baking? A quarter cup of mashed banana or unsweetened applesauce can save the day. (But if you’re already using them as a butter substitute — or are missing more than one ingredient from a recipe — it’s best to just scrap the item altogether.)
OUT OF: VINEGAR
REPLACE WITH: ANOTHER VINEGAR, LEMON JUICE or WINE
Most different types of vinegar can be substituted for each other in a pinch, but if there’s absolutely none in your pantry, try an equal measurement of lemon juice or lime juice.
Wine can also do the trick when you’re missing a fruitier variety: sub in an equal measurement of white wine for either white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or champagne vinegar, and red wine for red wine vinegar. Either red or white wine can be used in place of sherry vinegar, too.
Quick fixes! Though recipes tend to turn out best when they’re followed to the letter, some ingredients can be substituted if you run out or forgot to pick them up at the store
OUT OF: BROWN SUGAR
REPLACE WITH: WHITE SUGAR AND MOLASSES
Brown sugar is just white sugar with molasses added in, so really, you can put white sugar in any recipe that calls for brown. Depending on the recipe, it might not even change the finished product that much.
If you happen to have molasses in your cabinet, add a tbs. of it in for every cup of white sugar to get that deeper taste.
OUT OF: CORN SYRUP OR HONEY
REPLACE WITH: SUGAR AND WATER
Corn syrup and honey can be pretty easily swapped for simple syrup. For one cup of corn syrup, dissolve one cup granulated sugar and 1/4 cup hot water.
(Corn syrup and honey can also be used as substitutes for each other, though honey might slightly change the flavor of a recipe that calls for corn syrup.)
OUT OF: CORNSTARCH
REPLACE WITH: FLOUR
Cornstarch is called upon as a thickening agent for sauces (like turkey gravy) and pie fillings — but if you missed it on your shopping list, there are solutions.
The best swap is 2 to 3 tbs. all-purpose flour for 1 tbs. cornstarch. Arrowroot and potato starch can also make do at a 1-to-1 ratio.
Check your list twice! Butter has the most alternatives, while finding yourself without baking soda is not so easy to fix
OUT OF: MILK
REPLACE WITH: NON-DAIRY ‘MILK’, WATER AND BUTTER, YOGURT, HEAVY CREAM or SOUR CREAM
Thanks to vegans and the lactose intolerant, there are plenty of non-dairy milk alternatives (like almond and soy) that can work in place of the real thing.
If none of those are around, try replacing 1 cup of milk with either 1 cup of water plus 1 1/2 tsp. melted butter, 1 cup of heavy cream diluted with water, or 1 cup of plain yogurt.
Plain yogurt or sour cream are especially good alternatives when making macaroni and cheese and can add a creamier texture.
OUT OF: SOUR CREAM
REPLACE WITH: YOGURT
Whether its for banana bread to a savory casserole, sour cream can be swapped for an equal measurement of Greek yogurt or plain yogurt.
If you’re baking, buttermilk can also be an easy substitute.
OUT OF: BUTTERMILK
REPLACE WITH: MILK AND AN ACIDIC INGREDIENT
Buttermilk is simply a fermented milk, which has an acidic quality — so an approximation of it can be made with regular milk and an acid.
For every cup of buttermilk, sub in one cup of regular milk and one tbs. of either vinegar, lemon juice, or cream of tartar to sour it. Let the mixture stand for five minutes before using.
OUT OF: HEAVY CREAM
REPLACE WITH: WHIPPED CREAM or EVAPORATED MILK
Since whipped cream is made from heavy cream — which is beaten and fluffed up — you can simply replace heavy cream with double the amount of whipped cream.
The same amount of evaporated milk can be used as well, and it’s also a less-fattening alternative.
OUT OF: BAKING SODA
REPLACE WITH: WE HAVE SOME BAD NEWS…
Replacing baking soda in a recipe is very tricky. If you run out, it may be best to save this dish for last and ask your in-laws to bring some over.
Since baking soda adds texture and not taste, it’s really a practice in chemistry: The alkaline (baking soda) needs to be mixed with an acid (like brown sugar, lemon, chocolate, or buttermilk) — and there’s no ingredient that’s exactly like it.
If you’re really desperate, you can try using baking powder, which has baking soda in it — but it’s likely to be less effective.
However, if it’s baking powder that you’re missing, you’re in luck: For 1 tsp. baking powder, you can substitute 1/4 tsp. baking soda and 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar or 1/2 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. lemon juice or vinegar.