Substitution Sundays - Bananas

There are many different recipes that call for eggs, particularly when it comes to baked goods, but with the rising price of eggs it seems like a good idea to find ways to bake without eggs. There are certainly many recipes that do not call for this "liquid gold" (my mother, referencing the $2.50 she spent on a single dozen), but there are also ways to replace eggs with other binding ingredients. Bananas work really well as a substitute for things like muffins and sweet breads because they enhance the sweetness. Typically one mashed banana can be used in place of one whole egg.

When to replace an egg with a banana:

Use a banana instead of an egg if you don't mind your muffins, breads, or other things tasting like banana in addition to the other ingredients. If you want a very robust blueberry muffin, a banana might take away from the star of the show. However, if you want some nutty bran muffins, the banana might make your breakfast take on a whole new level of awesome. 

When to use the egg:

Use the egg if you are making pancakes. I tried substituting an extra banana for the egg in my banana pancakes and I ended up with a very thin stack of pancakes. I think this may be because the banana just wasn't up to the task of holding together the gluten network that needs to form for pancakes to get fluffy. Also use the egg if you aren't looking for banana undertones in your food. 

Note: I've never tried substituting bananas in cookies... If any of you have, let me know how that turned out! I may need to experiment with that.