Okay, so, I’ve been trying to cut down on butter lately, mostly because my jeans are starting to feel a little snug, you know? But I have a major sweet tooth. Like, I need my dessert. So, I started looking into baking without butter. Turns out, it’s totally doable and, dare I say, sometimes even better!
My First Foray into Butter-less Baking
First off, I tried making some cookies. I found this recipe online – no butter, just some oil, sugar, eggs, and the usual flour and stuff. I gotta admit, I was skeptical. Butter just makes everything taste good, right? Anyway, I mixed everything up, feeling a little weird about the whole oil-instead-of-butter thing.
- Mixed the wet ingredients first.
- Combined the dry stuff in a separate bowl.
- Slowly added the dry to the wet, mixing until just combined. I know you’re not supposed to overmix, it gets tough or something.
I scooped the dough onto a baking sheet and popped them in the oven.
The Results
The cookies baked, they smelled amazing, and guess what? They were actually pretty good! A little different texture, maybe, but still chewy and satisfying.
After the cookie success, I got a little bolder. I tried some no-bake stuff, too.
- Made a super simple chocolate pudding, just milk, cocoa powder, sugar, and some cornstarch to thicken it.
- Stirred it on the stove until it got all thick and pudding-like.
- Let it cool down and it was awesome. Rich, chocolatey, no butter needed.
Getting Creative
Then I made this no-bake cheesecake thing. It was a bit of an experiment, but it worked! I crushed up some graham crackers for the crust, mixed it with a bit of melted coconut oil – hey, at least it wasn’t butter!
- Pressed the crust into a pan.
- Whipped up some cream cheese with sugar and a bit of lemon juice for the filling.
- Poured the filling over the crust, smoothed it out all nice.
- Popped it in the fridge to set.
When I took a bite a few hours later, I was genuinely surprised. It was creamy, tangy, and honestly, I didn’t miss the butter in the crust at all.
What I Learned
So, yeah, baking without butter is totally a thing. You can make cookies, pudding, even cheesecake! It’s not always a perfect substitute, but it opens up a whole world of possibilities. You can use oil, or even things like applesauce or mashed bananas in some recipes to keep things moist.
And you know what? It’s kind of fun experimenting and seeing what works. Plus, my jeans are thanking me. Maybe I’ll try some no-bake bars next, or maybe a pie… the no-butter possibilities are endless!
