I regularly use coconut oil as a substitute for shortening. Coconut oil, butter, a little olive oil, and rarely, lard, when I get fresh lard (nothing that has been hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated), are the only fats I use. I haven't used any kind of vegetable oil or shortening for over 15 years.

How much you reduce the amount of coconut oil depends on the recipe, the amount of fat in the recipe, and how the fat contributes to the recipe. Most of the books and information I have on the subject say you can use about 25% LESS coconut oil and get the same results, and I've found that to be true as well. I easily reduce the amount of coconut oil by 25% in pastry, for instance. But I don't normally reduce it when making yeast bread where the amount is only a tablespoon, or in recipes that already have a low amount of fat.

From "Coconut Cookery" by V. MacBean:
By substituting coconut oil for the fat used in most baking recipes, one can reduce the amount of oil by anywhere from ten to twenty-five percent, allowing a considerable reduction in caloric intake. In some baking recipes one can reduce the fat by fifty percent and correct the loss of volume by substituting fifty percent prune puree, sucrose free. (end of information)

I've also used unsweetened applesauce for a portion of the fat while reducing the amount of coconut oil used. But saying all that, I've also used it in a 1:1 ration. It's one of those things you have to experiment with.

You can also use coconut oil as a bread spread, instead of butter, and is commonly used by vegans as such.

-Grainlady

Grainlady, what are your thoughts on Palm oils (non hydrogenated).

My mom had always taught me NO tropicals, period end of story, so I was shocked, a few years ago, to see 'palm oil' included in a list of ingredients on a bag of one of Whole Foods 365 brand products. Thats when I started reading and re-learning.

Thanks in advance!

I did my own research on the topic of dietary fats and I tend to march to the beat of a different drummer when it comes to choosing fat for cooking/baking. I generally maintain a low-fat diet to begin with - close to 20-25% fat in our diet.

Google - health benefits of coconut oil - to get a glimpse.

Until the 1960's most commercially-produced baked goods used coconut/palm oil in them, and you'll still find it so in Europe, and I occasionally run across it as an ingredient in old cookbooks. Baked goods containing coconut/palm oil didn't go rancid and subsequently had a longer shelf life, than those made with shortening and vegetable oil. The general health of people rapidly changed after hydrogenated shortening and highly-processed vegetable oils were introduced.

In general, I avoid polyunsaturated fatty acids and anything that is hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated, as much as possible. I tend to stick to whole foods and a very simple diet with a wide variety of foods. BTW - both hubby and I are in our mid-50's and take NO prescription medications. Great BP, cholesterol and blood glucose numbers.... Go figure! Which is more than our physician, who follows the "normal" Standard American Diet, can brag about (LOL).

-Grainlady

I use a lot of coconut oil. It's a saturated fat, to be sure, but it has shorter chain molecules than other saturated fats. The body probably does metabolize those differently than other longer-chain fats.

IMHO the bad rap that tropical oils have is due in large part to the hydrogenated tropical oils which are used to give some foods (like snack foods and crackers) a long shelf life. If the fats are fully hydrogenated, they don't go rancid as quickly. Looks like it's the hydrogenation rather than the fat itself that may be the bad actor; that process is what creates trans-fats.

There was a study a while back in Sri Lanka that had a bunch of men switch from coconut oil to corn oil. Their LDL/HDL ratios worsened and the rates of heart disease went UP. Now I don't know the design of the study--maybe in addition to changing to corn oil they did other Western activities like sitting on their hineys watching 'Baywatch' and smoking Marlboros--but it certainly did seem to suggest that the consumption of coconut oil per se was not that major of a factor.

Some people have latched on to this study and have made some health claims for coconut oil that are, to be charitable, a tad far-fetched. And some entrepreneurs are touting the benefits of virgin coconut oil, saying in essence, "My virgin coconut oil is better for you than your slutty coconut oil". Take it with a grain of sodium chloride. (Pure fleurs de sel, of course, none of that mass-market Morton's stuff.)

At any rate, I don't think that in moderation coconut oil is dangerous.

FWIW, it's good for seasoning cast iron.

I've always avoided coconut oil because it's so high in fat, but if you can use much less of it, it is definitely worth taking another look at. How is the taste in baked goods? I'm a little afraid the kids won't like it if it's too "coconutty".

I usually use agave instead of refined sugar, but have to add a bit more dry ingredients to make up for the extra liquid. I'm wondering if I use less coconut oil for my fat, perhaps I won't have to adjust the amount of dry ingredients anymore? Plus, is coconut oil expensive? Again, the cost might work out, like the fats, if I'm able to use much less.

I'm totally open to trying new things and intrigued by the possibilities of coconut oil.

By the way, I totally agree with Grainlady about the avoiding a typical Western diet. It's amazing how many diseases are purely a result of our American foods. And disgusting how the government and even modern science finds ways to support these processed foods.

AM

From a caloric standpoint, fat is fat. Safflower oil and coconut oil both have 9 calories per gram.

If the use of coconut oil helps you to lower the total amount of fat in your diet for whatever reason, it might be worthwhile.

You can get coconut oil that has no coconut flavor and others have only a light coconut flavor. LouAna brand (I get it from Wal-Mart) has no coconut flavor, and Omega Nutrition Coconut Oil is another that has no flavor of coconut. I like and use both flavored and unflavored. The light coconut flavor is a "secret ingredient" in my brownies. People seem to love it, but can't quite figure out what it is. ;-) -Grainlady

I'm on the same page as everyone as far as diet and low fat, no matter the source.

But is there a health/nutritional difference between palm and coconut oils (non-hydrogenated)?

I can get Spectrum Organics Coconut and palm shortening products at my local health food stores (I threw out my Crisco). They also can be bought online, link below. Arabella, they are kosher.

Here is a link that might be useful: Spectrum organics

Grainlady, I use the Walmart/LouAna brand too. I have also bought a store brand coconut oil from the DeKalb Farmers Market and I can't really tell much difference between the two.

The very mild coconut flavor is nice in certain dishes. Fresh shrimp stir-fried in a little coconut oil is really good--the slight sweetness of the oil complements the sweetness of fresh shrimp. And once my DW made baked potatoes for a crowd only to find out we were out of butter; she 'buttered' them with coconut oil and the crowd raved about them.

Wow, interesting dialog...

Jessy..use up the Spectrum Shortening in a "quickish" fashion as it will go rancid when forgotten about in the pantry!!! (ask me how I know!) LOL

I've used two Organic coconut oils so far..one is refined(Omega Nutrition) (no coconut flavor) the other is virgin(WildernessFamily)..(mild coconut scent, more than flavor).

Wilderness Family

Here is a link that might be useful: Omega Nutrition

grainlady, DH & I are in our early 50's on no meds with good "numbers." I would like us to stay that way and it's a big reason why I am a home cook.

This discussion about coconut oil is all new to me. Can you recommend sources for me to read more about it - in layman's terms (DS is a chemist.....I am NOT)

Did you come up with recipes by tweaking your own, or is there a cookbook you would recommend?

My sister recently began using coconut oil as a moisturizer. She has allergies to many products and found this works well for her. I never thought to cook or bake with it -

We sold coconut oil from NOW foods while I was still married to the ex. He still carries it, it's $5.99 for a 12 oz. bottle.

It's more expensive than butter, and certainly more expensive than shortening, but not more expensive than walnut oil or hazelnut oil or even good olive oil and it's much healthier for your heart, IMO, than butter. They all have about the same amount of fat and calories, but all fats are not created equally in a nutritional sense.

Ashley likes apples sauteed in a bit of coconut oil in lieu of butter, and says they don't need as much sugar either, because the coconut oil adds some flavor of its own. I use it in some baked goods, but find that things like shortbread are somewhat the worse in taste and texture for the substitution. Of course, I make shortbread about twice a year, so it's an occasional splurge anyway.

It's all a matter of what you like, and I find that I have to experiment and try things to determine whether its a good sub for certain other fats.

I can also say that I'm in my 50s and have extremely low blood pressure, my glucose levels are excellent and the only reason I have high cholesterol is my genetics, it's an inherited trait from my mother's side and has nothing to do with my diet.

I eat sugar when I like (Michigan beet sugar, grown and made locally), butter in moderation, use regular old flour off the shelf. However, I grow my own organic garden, my own grass fed beef, my own free range chickens and eggs and then I can and preserve those things myself. I try to avoid the hydrogenated fats and remember what my old doc told me: "If it wasn't a food 50 years ago, it's not a food today". Of course, he also told me that if you're over 40 and you get up in the morning and nothing hurts, you've died in your sleep. In spite of that, I have no discernable aches and pains and can still do a cartwheel on Makayla's lawn, spend 10 hours digging post holes without giving out and outrun the grandkids, so I must be doing SOMETHING right.

Annie

Amck, I started reading Nourishing Traditions.
Some might thinks it's far out there..and some may not..
I think that many of the practices and dietary idiology makes sense to my family. I don't follow it like a bible, but have implemented some of it into our daily lives.

Here is a link that might be useful: Nourishing Traditions

And Annie - if I remember correctly - you can still do the splits, too!!

Nourishing Traditions looks interesting. Thanks for the link.

AM

Yes, AM, I CAN still do the splits, but I attribute that to regular Pilates, which keeps me limber, LOL. However, I found out this weekend that I should not drop to my knees on the trampoline. That kind of hurts, LOL, although I did manage to spring back up!

Annie

Thanks for the responses. I linked to the Nourishing Traditions site and it looks like an interesting read.

A benefit to having lived 50+ yrs. is that I've test-driven a lot of the food trends over a number of decades, the latest was the South Beach Diet. DH and I dropped a few pounds, but it was not a diet we could sustain forever. We've gone back to including bread in our diet, and other baked goods, but in moderation. For us, deprivation of any food group usually leads to bingeing on it at some point LOL.

I reread all the posts in this thread and I had skimmed over grainlady's note about googling for more info. Will do that.

Amck - terri pacnw gave you a great book to get started on - "Nourishing Traditions". I have a well-thumbed volume of it that I've used for many years now. Like terri, I'm not a Kool-aid-drinking "follower", but I have gleaned a lot of good ideas - like soaking and dehydrating nuts. It makes them easier to digest, increases available nutrition; as well the information about fermented and traditional foods. Can't do the raw meat thing, however.... I do respect their knowledge on the benefits of traditional foods.

Check out Weston A. Price Foundation - it goes along with "Nourishing Traditions": http://www.westonaprice.org/splash_2.htm

Information from Bruce Fife, N.D. -
"Coconut Cures" You can read portions here: http://books.google.com/books?id=JW8RtCJqZ8MC&dq=Bruce+Fife,+N.D.&pg=PP1&ots=4MaMKhb6kF&source=citation&sig=qP_0whlSzkoAJBqmocdvpT1oTkc&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=11&ct=result#PPP1,M1

I also use low-glycemic, low-carb. coconut flour a lot, and Fife's cookbook "Cooking with Coconut Flour".

Books on Coconut Research: http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/books.htm

-Grainlady

The next book I'm after is "The Coconut Oil Miracle". By Bruce Fife.

I only borrowed a copy of Nourishing Traditions from the library and also Eat Fat to Loose Fat. They are both on my to buy list now.
Here's a blog that I love to follow. She follows Nourishing Traditions, with a few more other things thrown in..as well as avoiding dairy as much as possible because she has some health issues..She's trying to work through them naturally.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Nourishing Gourmet