I finally made a cake with the Meyer Lemons that fell from my tree. Grainlady, I thought I had coconut oil but I didn't. I looked where I normally shop and wasn't happy with what they had so I wound up using the quick lemon cake recipe that Shambo posted and my lightest, virtually flavorless, olive oil. I still think that the slight coconut flavor of coconut oil with the lemon would be great and I have put it on my phone shopping list. The spicy lime mayo you posted is definitely something we would love and I just looked at their website and one of my local supermarkets sells it, so it's on the list too. Thanks for your help. Sherrmann, coconut oil has been controversial, but from all the reading I've done, I feel it is healthy. We all have to make our own decisions on lots of foods and I will be quick to admit that I often feel there is conflicting research on all sorts of foods. I love butter too, but since my very serious heart surgery I have to be careful about how much I use. Coconut oil has no cholesterol and no sodium and butter is very high in cholesterol. I certainly do eat some butter, but it's in my best interest to limit it which is why my original question was to ask what to substitute for some of the butter. I'm sure this recipe would be fabulously wonderful with the original amount of butter. Lee

If you have sweetened coconut milk, it can be an acceptable substitute. If the coconut milk is not thick enough, you might have to reduce it down a bit or perhaps add a bit of tapioca or cornstarch to it. Adding coconut flakes would also help it to stay together. I've substituted coconut milk for SCM in macaroons, and I like them better. If you 12 oz can of coconut milk is not sweetened, you can add 1/3 cup sugar to it - that's what I do in my macaroon recipe. Lars Here is a link that might be useful: Lars' Macaroons

Ironically, I was using coconut flour (and also nut flours) long before I went gluten-free as a way to reduce high-glycemic foods in our diet. When it comes to sorghum flour, I suggest milling your own, but I suggest that with all the whole grains because "fresh is best" - for the flavor as well as the nutrition. Sorghum is soft enough you can mill it in small batches in a coffee/spice mill. Sorghum flour tends to be gritty, so try to use it with a mixture of other textures, like oatmeal, unsweetened coconut.... Using the "soaked flour" method also helps; and when you make cookies, chill the dough overnight and that will help eliminate the grittiness. --Add 1/2 to 1 T. of cornstarch to every cup of sorghum flour to improve the smoothness and moisture retention. Arrowroot or tapioca flour can also be used measure-for-measure for cornstarch, or you can use 2 T. of Ultra Gel for every T. of cornstarch. --Use xanthan gum as a binder and for moisture retention. Add 1/2 t. of xanthan gum per cup of sorghum flour for cookies and cakes; or 1 t. per cup for breads. --Add a little extra oil or solid fat if you think your recipes are too dry. --Make small cakes, large cakes can dry out quickly. --Add an extra egg or egg white for improved smoothness and crumb structure. --Add a little extra baking powder and/or soda to boost rising properties. --Interestingly enough, you may find mixing doughs and batters longer than what you think would be necessary also helps the end results. --Sorghum flour works well combined with other grain/seed/bean flours. When working with bean flour, mill small white beans because they have the least amount of "beany" flavor. Sorghum flour, in combination with bean flour, helps cut the bitterness of bean flour. --You can also help "mask" some of the strong flavors of these gluten-free flours by choosing brown sugar, or even better, coconut palm sugar, or maple sugar, over white sugar. --Many gluten-free products and recipes use flour/starch mixtures that tend to be very low in vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber, and are high-glycemic, which can raise the blood sugar of diabetics. I tend to side on healthier ingredients and milling my own grains/seeds/beans for improved nutrition from the commercial all-purpose flour mixtures. Even though these commercial all-purpose flour mixtures are gluten-free, they are not healthy options, in my opinion, so I wouldn't use them frequently. You are potentially trading one health issue - gluten - for another. --Adding legume flours, ground flax, ground chia seeds, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, and flour milled from corn (especially high-nutrient blue corn), are going to add a wider variety of nutrients, vitamins, and antioxidants. Nut flours add protein to keep the glycemic impact lower. --Potato starch is often used in combination with other gluten-free flours, but you can also add dried potato flakes to baked goods, which will aid in holding moisture. --Benefits of using sorghum flour. Sorghum is high in insoluble fiber, with relatively small amounts of soluble fiber. The protein and starch in sorghum endosperm are more slowly digested than many other cereal grains. The slower rate of digestibility of sorghum products may be beneficial to diabetics over using high-glycemic flours and starches. --Sorghum flour tastes similar to wheat flour and is mild-flavored. --Sorghum flour mixes well with corn flour in tortillas. -Grainlady

fawnridge- It depends on the recipe.... (now that's a big cop-out ;-). I'm all gluten-free now, and I'm trying to think if I even used it prior to going gluten-free (seems like a lifetime ago). My old favorite Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies used both white/brown sugars and I wouldn't hesitate to use all coconut palm sugar. I'm going to make some McCann's Irish Oatmeal Cookies for St. Patrick's Day for hubby to take to work, and they take both kinds of sugar -- I'll make a batch with coconut palm sugar only and see if there is a big difference as a test. -If you use it for white sugar, the end product will be darker, whether the recipe calls for white sugar OR white and brown sugar mixture. -It takes longer to cream with fat due to the larger particle, and may not get as well-blended. I even cream for awhile and let it sit for a few minutes, then cream some more - giving the large particles time to breakdown. You can sift it or make the particles smaller in a blender (or spice/coffee mill like sleevendog mentioned). -I find I can often use less (also depending on the recipe). I make a gluten-free banana snack cake and I've reduced the sugar from 3/4-cup to 1/3-cup coconut palm sugar (as an example). -I've put coconut palm sugar in a blender to pulverize it to use as powdered sugar (I added a little cornstarch or arrowroot - not sure how much). It doesn't perform exactly like powdered sugar - it's still a little coarse/gritty - but not bad. -I ended up treating it more-or-less like I did sucanat or turbinado sugar, if you are familiar with using them. -Grainlady