We're trying to cut margerine from our diet and need to make cakes/cookies without margerine, butter, or shortening. Ideas, anyone? PS, no Earth Balance suggestions, please. My son has a flax seed allergy, and it uses flax oil. Also, no coconut oil, since we're trying to reduce saturated fats. Thanks!
Had forgotten about the applesauce trick - I'll have to try it! Also may use a little bit of healthy oil as well.
The research that framed tropical oils (including coconut oil) as bad have been largely discounted. It was based all on one very popular, but very flawed, study back in the 80s/early 90s.
i suggest you rethink healthy, delicious coconut oil. with the other restrictions you've got going on, it will be your best baking friend.
:) khairete
S.
Cooking, and particularly baking, is science. You need certain elements to get the desired result. Applesauce works with some, but not all, cookie recipes. Your results with applesauce in cake will also vary. Forget trying to make any kind of bread.
Your best baking option for best results is usually a non-trans fat vegetable shortening. If you really want to stay away from vegetable products, then animal lard is what you need. One exception is if the recipe specifically demands real butter. It that case, don't substitute.
Take a moment to put your question into perspective. Consider that you're talking about making cookies and cake, neither one of which are ever healthy, with or without fats. This is not the area in which to concentrate your concerns about healthful cooking.
Applesauce may work out well for you - it changes the flavor and texture of recipes a bit but still provides baked goods that are moist and tasty.
Coconut oil is one of the best fats you can have in your diet. You may want to research it a bit before discounting it completely - when used at room temperature or chilled it's a great substitute for butter and when warmed slightly to above room temperature it's a good substitute for liquid oil.
Is someone allergic to dairy? Is that why you need a substitute to begin with? If it's just to avoid lactose (an intolerance vs. an allergy) then ghee might be an option as the butter is clarified to remove the milk solids, thereby removing the lactose. It's still considered a dairy food though so if someone is vegan or has a true dairy allergy, it's not a good substitute.
Finally, canola oil and sunflower oil (and corn oil, etc.) aren't "healthy" oils and they are most likely made with GMO ingredients. Olive oil isn't good for baking - the strong flavor comes through and olive oil, generally speaking, isn't good for cooking as it oxidizes at high heat. If you do use a vegetable oil, try to get one that is organic so that you know it's not GMO, but try to avoid vegetable oils in general. This blog has a nice, concise summary of different kinds of oils:
I always use apple sauce or coconut oil.
Try applesauce.
http://www.ehow.com/how_###-###-####_bake-applesauce-inst...
I often just use olive oil, canola oil, sunflower oil... to substitute butter or margarine and for many recipes it works great.
All I could think of besides coconut oil was goat milk butter.
In some countries duck and/or goose fat is used a lot in cooking but I don't know about baking with it.
I have a cook book that my Mom got from her MIL when she first got married (in the 1950's) and they used lard (rendered pig fat) for just about everything.
I hear lard is making a comeback now that hydrogenated fats/oils are falling out of favor.
Try olive oil or canola oil in place of the butter. You can try applesauce, or other fruit puree (or pumpkin puree) in place of it, but it may not have exactly the right taste or texture when done. I've successfully used yogurt, but since you're looking for non-dairy, you might try one of the soy or coconut yogurts out there.
We use Earth Balance and Fleishmann's UNSALTED margarine. I know Fleishmann's is still margarine, but just wanted to throw it out there since the Earth Balance is out.
