Alcohol Substitute Suggestions for Boozy Dessert Recipes

Wine, bourbon, rum, beer…sometimes your dessert recipes call for an added spirit to kick things up a notch. But what if you don’t have any alcohol on hand or prefer not to use alcohol in a dessert recipe? If you need an alcohol substitute, we have some tips for you so your desserts are still decadent albeit alcohol-free.Bourbon – Bourbon is tasty in many desserts, but if you are making our Brown Butter Bourbon Spice Cookies, Bourbon Buttermilk Pie or Bourbon Peach Cobbler and don’t have any bourbon on hand, you can use this easy alcohol substitute – bourbon extract or vanilla extract. For 2 tablespoons of bourbon, use 1 to 2 teaspoons of bourbon extract or vanilla extract.Red Wine – Have you found yourself half way through making these delicious Cherry Fig Merlot Bars when you discovered you drank the last glass of merlot the night before with dinner? No problem. Simply substitute an equal amount of red grape juice, cranberry juice or nonalcoholic wine.Rum – If you’re preparing tropical desserts like our Banana Rum Cupcakes and Cuban Rum Cake but don’t have rum, use rum extract or reach for the pineapple juice. Use the same amount of pineapple juice as the recipe calls for rum as an alcohol substitute.

Beer – Breaking bread with family and friends is tastier when you bake it yourself but if you’re fresh out of beer when making our Cheddar, Chive & Corn Beer Bread or Beer Ciabatta Bread you can use non-alcoholic beer, chicken broth or white grape juice instead. However, the flavor will be different when using this alcohol substitute.

Creme de Menthe – These delicious recipes can achieve a similar minty kick with non-alcoholic mint extract or spearmint extract instead of creme de menthe.Creme De Menthe Brownies Dark Chocolate Glazed Creme de Menthe Shortbread

Bailey’s Irish Cream – Is St. Patrick’s Day around the corner and you find you’re out of Bailey’s? The luck o’ the Irish is with you because you can make your own Irish Cream Liqueur or alternatively, you can substitute Irish Cream flavored creamer or Torani Irish Cream syrup in place of Bailey’s Irish Cream in our Dark Chocolate Guinness Cake with Bailey’s Buttercream and our Spiked Cake Pops.

Tip from Chef Eddy Van Damme: Remember that extracts are far more concentrated in flavor then liquor. Be sure to look at the bottle for alcohol substitute guidelines.

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