Aquafaba is one of those magical treasures the plant-based world has to offer. Translated it simply means bean water. A byproduct when cooking beans, that usually ends up in the drain.
When I first heard that you can make desserts with the cooking water from beans, I thought that was so cool but could not imagine how. I am all about sustainability, avoiding waste, and making use of as many parts of my produce as possible. Lemon peels are soaked in vinegar for a non-toxic cleaner, potato peels go in the oven to turn into chips and the bean water gets transformed into the most delicious desserts.
I used to skim the white foam that forms when cooking beans straight into the drain before it would overflow and create a mess on my stove. This white foam is the starch of the legumes that has gelled due to soluble proteins that pass into the cooking water. So instead of throwing it out, the liquid can be used as an egg replacement, for marshmallow cream, s’mores, merengue, macaroons and so much more.
After experimenting for a while and refining my recipes, aquafaba is now a stable in the kitchen of The Culinary Alchemists: plant-based, free of soy, gluten, and processed white sugar.
