Making cookies, butter or margarine or shortening
By suspenseful
@suspenseful (40193)
Canada
December 20, 2007 10:14pm CST
I do not make cookies that often, Christmas and special occasions being the only times as well as expecting company. I used to use margarine and shortening, but now use butter. I started first with salted butter, it being cheaper, but then switched to unsalted when I found I could get it at the same price whenever it was on sale at our Shoppers. I have tasted cookies made with margarine and or shortening, and frankly the taste does not appeal to me. And with butter being more expensive, the temptation to eat too many is considerably diminished. The only cookie that I do not use butter is oatcakes and with those I prefer lard or bacon fat. So tell me what do you use and the reason for your choice.
6 people like this
16 responses
@blackbriar (9076)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I use butter-flavored Crisco shortening in stick form for cookies. Tastes just like the cookies were made with real butter. What are oatcakes? Never heard of em before.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
You're welcome. I grew up on oatmeal cookies or oakcakes as they call them in Scotland.
1 person likes this
@blackbriar (9076)
• United States
21 Dec 07
Ahhhhh ok. Only time I like oatmeal is as hot cereal. My hubby is the oatmeal fan in this house. I'll check out the link and ask him if he wants me to try making it. Least if he doesn't like it, I can always feed the birds. Thanks for the link.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157553)
• United States
22 Dec 07
Hi, suspenseful, thanks for the link, I just may try it. With the emphasis on increasing fiber to help your heart and lose weight, it is sure to be a good one. Sounds like it anyway.
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I don't cook if I can avoid it, being a lazy one. But I prefer to cook and eat cookies with butter.
Why? Because there are less chemicals in it, fewer ingredients. And I know what milk does to me, some of those other ones cause - interesting - allergic reactions if I get too many of them.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
Butter is better for you, with getting allergies it is better to go with as many natural ingredients as possible. I get phelgm from milk so I have to be careful, and I cannot use too much white flour even the unbleached kind.
@MistyMorrigan (3)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I always use butter.It gives perfect flavor to cookies.
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
21 Dec 07
When ever I made cookies. I used what the receipe called for most of them called for lard.
When I couldnt get pure lard I used crisco in the can think it Was called shortning.
Oh yes I would use real butter to thats all I ever use on any thing I hate the taste of margerine!
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
I use lard when I make oatmeal cookies as they are supposed to be crispy and it is traditional to make them that way. I hate margarine, and I would use butter not only in my cookies but as a spread if it were not for the price.
@carmelanirel (20942)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I never use margarine and rarely use shortening. I use butter in all my cookies, because it is better for you.
margarine is practically yellow colored shortening anyways, so if I use one or the other, I would just use shortening and that is only for certain recipes where butter won't work, like for pie crust..
Keep using the butter, freeze the extra cookies to prevent temptation of you eating them up..:)
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
Doing that. I use lard for pie crusts. I used to watch my mother put the color in margarine. That was when they called it oleomargarine and I never did like the tsste. Why that is one of the reasons I put on weight, besides it having transfat that I never knew at that time, when I had bread, I put jam or syrup on the margarine to disguise the taste.
1 person likes this
@carmelanirel (20942)
• United States
22 Dec 07
Yeah, no one knew about the transfat back then, my mother too bought margarine, but I switched when I found out the truth..
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
21 Dec 07
I used to use butter flavored Crisco, but then I started to read the label, and that contains trans fat, so then I gave up shortening all together. When I make pies I use lard instead.
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
They must have improved it, but I did hear that they do not count the milliscules of percentages and I heard that transfats add up. Still how can it keep?
@irishidid (8688)
• United States
21 Dec 07
It depends on what I'm making. I like to use butter as often as possibly. The flavor is better. For some things the texture you get is the key. I prefer using shortening for my Russian teacake recipes and butter in my cream wafers.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
I think that if the recipe contains margarine, you can always use butter, but if it says shortening you can use lard.
@Polly1 (12645)
• United States
21 Dec 07
Today I made some cookie dough. I used Canola oil and margerine. It would have been nice to use real butter, but the margerine was lots cheaper. I haven't bought shortening in years. The recioe called for shortening too, I used oil instead. I have made these cookies many times and they come out just fine.
1 person likes this
@meme0907 (3481)
• United States
7 Jan 08
Hey s,
Sorry for being late on your discussion I'm trying to catch up my emails |:x
Well,I've never made cookies from scratch I always use premade dough that's just my preference b/c it's quicker & probably pretty close to the same price as making them from scratch.
+'s |:)
@slickcut (8141)
• United States
21 Dec 07
well i go by whatever the recipe calls for.This week i have been baking a lot and making cookies and all the recipes that i have used has called for butter, so that is what i used.I do remember when the recipes called for shortening and i use to use that but either the recipes have changed or i am using a different recipes, i don't know which..my recipes come from my sister and my husbands aunt so i am not sure how old or new that are..I was looking through an old recipe book and i did see a lot of older cookie recipes that called for shortening, but hose are not the ones that i made this year...
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
I have an old Betty Crocker cookbook and it calls for margarine and shortening, plus all the things that are now not good for you, like corn syrup for making fudge and candies. I will have to ditch that one and get one more up to date. I have another cookbook that gives you a choice of butter or margarine and I go with the former. Now all I need is a recipe book where you can substitute butter for margarine in cakes, other in pound cake that has always had butter in it anyway and has kind of expensive to make.
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
16 Jan 08
Butter makes all the difference in cookies, especially, um.... butter cookies :) and sugar cookies, the typical Christmas Cookie. I agree that unsalted is better when baking. I usually stock up on butter when it is on sale, usually the lowest I see it anymore is 1.69 a pound.
@neenasatine (2841)
• Philippines
15 Jan 08
i tried to use margarine however it end up with unsatisfying results. so i still prefer butter...
@HomeFlower (987)
• Canada
21 Dec 07
We use soy margarine.
There are different brands with different price points from the very reasonable to the outrageously expensive.
Each brand has it's own flavour and some are so close to the real butter taste it would be difficult to tell them apart in a blindfold test.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
We get mostly canola margarine up here and also we have some that has olive oil in it but it is the soft margarine, the kind for spreading and not for baking unless you reduce the water, but evne though some is like butter it is not the same.
@moneyandgc (3428)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I have only used margarine in my cookies. There really isn't a reason, it is just the way it has always been. My mom uses margarine too, but I do remember her making chocolate chip cookies with butter flavored Crisco when I was little a couple of times.
Does the salted butter versus the unsalted butter make a big difference in taste? I have a brick of unsalted butter right now. What would be the best cookies to make with it?
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
22 Dec 07
Shortbread has always been made with butter and you can always add the amount of salt you want. With salted butter, sometimes they salt it a bit too much and if you look for recipes with butter they usually call for unsalted.
@coffeebreak (17798)
• United States
21 Dec 07
I have the same thought. I hear Martha Stewart allt he time praising butter. I have alwys used margaine due to price. But today, butter was on sale nad I splurged and bought a pound and will be using it htise weekend. to see the difference. Will be interetsing!
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157553)
• United States
22 Dec 07
I usually use whatever the recipe specifies, as that has an effect on the results, a softer cooky, or chewier or crispier.I like things that use butter, because although it is animal fat, it is still much better for you to eat butter.Of course, too much of anything can really hrt you.
@chrislotz (8137)
• Canada
23 Dec 07
If the recipe calls for butter or margarine then I use butter. I too, like the taste of butter better. But if the recipe calls for shortening I will use shortening. More than likely the butter won't work. Otherwise the recipe would state to use butter. I, personally, would not use lard or bacon fat because that would change the taste of the recipe. But to each their own. If it works for you, I say, go for it.
