How to Substitute Baking Powder for Yeast in Homemade Baked Goods

Whether you've finally made your peace with carbs or just have an afternoon with nothing to do, freshly baked bread is never a bad idea.

However, if you've got all your ingredients needed to bake bread only to find you're missing the yeast, don't abandon your baking plans completely. You can easily substitute baking powder for yeast in plenty of baked goods.

While it's also used in the production of cheese and wine, you probably know yeast as the must-have ingredient when baking bread. But considering most people don't ferment their own wine or cheese at home, yeast may not be an ingredient readily available in your pantry.

Luckily, you can substitute baking powder for yeast in many baking recipes. Switching out baking powder for yeast works especially well if you're preparing batter breads, pizza dough, muffins, cakes or pancakes, according to Shena Jaramillo, RD.

If you do use baking powder instead of yeast, there are some factors to take into consideration, Jaramillo warns. Baking powders made with aluminum phosphate may produce a bitter after taste, which can pretty drastically change the flavor of your recipe.

In some cases, using baking powder in place of yeast can also change the texture of your baked good, making it more coarse. As a general rule of thumb, you'll also want to avoid using baking powder in kneaded breads, Jaramillo says.

No baking powder readily available? Another baking hack you can try is using baking soda in place of yeast. Just add in an acid (like lemon juice) to the dough.

If you want to swap baking powder for yeast in your own kitchen, Jaramillo suggests giving this zucchini bread a try. This yeast-free recipe requires relatively few ingredients and takes only about an hour to prepare. Bonus: Make this dish even healthier by using whole-wheat flour.