Nutrition - Redding,CA

Whole Foods carries a non-hydrogenated all vegetable shortening by Spectrum.

http://www.spectrumorganics.com/?id=87#j236

Hope this helps,

L. Vachani
Holistic Nutrition Consultant
hfwellness.com

it's my understanding that shortening IS hydrogenated oil. bummer, huh? nothing makes a good buscuit like Crisco!!

Whole Foods sells a brand of shortening without hydrogenated oils.

I'm not certain but I thought I saw it at Nugget too.

at a health food stores, they are palm oil based so that they are solid a t room temperature. Make sure the ingredients do Not list hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils to ensure nor trans fats

You can usually substitute butter for shortening in equal amounts - if the recipe asks for salt then use unsalted butter.

Use unrefined coconut oil, palm oil or butter instead. All of these unrefined fats in moderation are very healthy. You are correct in avoiding completely hydrogenated fats - they wreak havoc in your body.

Shortening is a fat which is solid at room temperature, to do that it needs to be hydrogenated acording to chemistry. The thing you DON'T want is an artifically hydrogentated fat, that is, an oil which has been hydrogenated by an artificially process, so you are right on target. Oil which has been chemically treated to make it hydrogentated, rather than coming that way from nature comes out in equal parts of two forms called CIS and TRANS. Fats that are hydrogenated by living processes (plant and animal created fats) are all CIS, and most animals, including humans, only have digestive enzymes to break down CIS forms of fats. We cannot digest TRANS fats, therefore it just hangs around in our system undigested, unused, and messing up our body chemistry.

There are a number of fats which are solid at room temperature naturally including butter, lard, tallow, and cocoa butter, and coconut is partially naturally hydrogenated, so it is not solid at room temperature, but is "thick" and can be substituted in some recipies successfully. There are a number of others, but these are ones I use most often. These foods which are naturally hydrogenated have been villified by the big food companies so you would buy their artifically hydrogenated products. It was very confusing to me when I took chemistry, why there was all this stuff about margarine, hydrogenated shortening etc being "better", when they were clearly half undigestible fat. It wasn't until I studied politics and lobbies that it began to be clear, it was "better" for the pocketbooks of the companies paying the advertisers and legislators, not better for the health of the person eating it! Natural fats are less stable, they "spoil" faster. The artifical stuff is half undigestable by any lifeform so it keeps longer, has a longer "shelf life" so it is way cheaper produce and to sell. Chemical process in a big plant vs cows to be raised, fed, milked, and have that milk collected, churned, and the butter sent to market, guess which is cheaper and easier for a big company?

There have been numerous studies showing this or that group who use butter, lard, tallow, cocoa butter, coconut fats and other naturally hydrogenated fats extensively have far lower incidence of heart disease than the US - think of the French and their butter, chocolate eaters, the diet of the Polinesians with it's high pork and coconut fats - which is seemingly puzzling (not). Plus a set of unrecognized research includes studies that link the rise of heart disease in the US with the rise of use of artifically hydrogentated fats.

For "shortening" without hydrogenated oils, go with the natural fats - we really like substituting butter for shortening in most recipies, and many French recipies mix several natural fats (think butter and lard mixed for piecrust) to get the right texture. Some of the others produce wonderful tastes and textures as well! Any fat which is plant or animal produced (natural) and solid at room termperature, and a "food" can be used. Good luck in your quest, and if you come across ones that work particularly well, or have fabulous flavors, please share back with us?

Almost any store with a large organic section should have it. Here in Santa Cruz Whole Foods, New Leaf, and Staff of Life all carry it. It is just pressed palm oil, which is naturally solid (though soft) at room temp. If you don't have dairy allergies you'll get best baking results by mixing 1/2 and 1/2 with butter.

One thing to note is that any fat that is solid at room temp contains saturated fat. In the big picture saturates are better than trans fats, but they are still what my kids call a 'sometimes food', that is to say eat in moderation.

Happy baking!

Have you checked Whole Foods yet?

Spectrum Naturals makes an "Organic All-Vegetable Shortening". It says it's non-hydrogenated, 0g trans-fat. Only one ingredient: mechanically pressed organic palm oil.

I've seen it in other stores besides Whole Foods. Try Andronico's or Draeger's.

-D.