Butter vs Margarine

[mish]

Butter. We go through butter like water.

IC, I feel like Babwa Walters... but I'm gonna come right out and ask - If you're okay sharing with us - what kind of cuisine do you specialize in?

& what's the deal with those little individually wrapped pats 'o butter on the table? Is it butter - or is it margarine?

I hope you're laughing out there.

 

[ironchef]

IC, I feel like Babwa Walters... but I'm gonna come right out and ask - If you're okay sharing with us - what kind of cuisine do you specialize in?

& what's the deal with those little individually wrapped pats 'o butter on the table? Is it butter - or is it margarine?

I hope you're laughing out there.

Those pats are butter, or should be. I've never seen margarine wrapped like that. A lot of places don't even serve butter anymore with their bread, or they'll just serve butter alongside other things. We give our bread with three spreads: a whipped cayenne-passion fruit butter, black olive aioli, and lemon-rosemary oil. If a guest is insistent about getting just plain butter we have that as well.

My cuisine is basically fusion with leaning heavy on Asian, medium on Mediterranean, and some Southwestern influences.

 

[mudbug]

Butter here for me and HH. I've started buying the Smart Balance stuff for the kid (hates butter, the idiot), but that stuff is as hard as a rock.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

A recent article on fats came to my attention. The article shed some light on the overall fat issue for me. It stated that vegetable oils such as corn and safflower, though high in poly-unsaturated fats, were prone to oxidation, which releases free radicles and increases LDL (low-density-lipoprotien) cholesterol. These fats also do nothing to increase the level of HDL (high-density-lipoprotien) cholesterol. In effect, they do you no good.

Trans-fats are fates that have been hydrogenated. The process makes them solid and easy to work with, and retards spoilage. These fats directly contribute to an increase of LDL cholesterol and add no HDL cholesterol to the blood.

Saturated fat, as the most knowledgeble gentleman and friend from Fort Worth stated, is an animal fat and adds LDL cholesterol directly to the bloodstream. It is to be used in moderation.

Surprizingly, olive oil, while adding no LDL cholesterol, is also neutral with respect to HDL cholesterol. It doesn't affect the cholesterol levels in the blood. It is still a calorie-dense food and should be used in moderation. This is true of all the seed derived oils, and fruits such as avacadoes.

According to the article, sunflower oil both lowers the LDL cholesterol, and increases the HDL cholesterol in the blood, making it the healthiest of consumable fats. It is an oil that withstands high temps and is absolutely neutral in flavor. That is the oil I use whenever I need a neutral oil, or one to fry with. The second oil I use is EVOO, for its flavor. Finally, I use butter in small amounts, again for flavor. Though it can contribute LDL cholesterol, it doesn't decrease the HDL cholesterol as do trans-fats such as shortening and margerine.

I don't use Canola oil as there is too much controversy about it for me to trust it. There are people on both sides of that argument, with each side being extreme in their opinions. One side says the stuff is hte greatest fat on the planet. The other says it's the most dangerous fat we can put in our bodies. I'm not taking the chance. Besides, sunflower oil production is second only to canola oil, making it cheaper than most other cooking oils.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[buckytom]

i knew that i preferred butter when i was visiting a friend in maryland once. the neighbor, for some odd reason, put some butter and margarine out on his back steps on a fairly cold morning. shortly thereafter, when he wasn't looking, me and a few stray cats and squirrels had finished it off, with some good rye bread...

silly humans.

edited: ok, i read this again and thought "what the heck was i drinking that day". but then i read back to mugsy's post, and realized the joke.

 

[LeeAnn]

We prefer butter over margarine. Though my husband has liked margarine since his childhood. I don't remember ever liking butter as a child and I think that was because I rarely had it, but now love it. I need to learn moderation though, I'm not very good at that. I love toast TOO much for a snack. Old habits.

I meant to write down as one of my resolutions for this year (cuz I haven't done any all the previous years ) to learn more about good and bad fats and all that other jazz that goes along with the food we put in our bodies.

I always bake and cook with butter only and seem to enjoy all that I prepare with it! haha

I remember my younger brother loving!!! margarine though, he would get a cube out and eat one as a snack. YUCK!

 

[cats]

Goodweed mentioned trans-fats in his previous note and I was wondering if any of you heard that the government is, effective 2006, requiring that packaged food products also now include the trans-fats in their list of ingredients? I never read these pkg. ingredient lists, but my husband does, and it should be a good thing for people to know who are watching that particular addition to their diets.

 

[pckouris]

Just forget margrine..period!

 

[middie]

i like butter but i never get to use it since my son is allergic to dairy products

 

[Michael in FtW]

Goodweed mentioned trans-fats in his previous note and I was wondering if any of you heard that the government is, effective 2006, requiring that packaged food products also now include the trans-fats in their list of ingredients? I never read these pkg. ingredient lists, but my husband does, and it should be a good thing for people to know who are watching that particular addition to their diets.

The problem with Trans-Fats is that technically (chemically) they are still unsaturated fats ... however after the hydrogenation process their physical structure is altered and they behave the same as saturated fats (both for lower oxidation rates - which increases shelf life - and the way body metabolizes them).

For those who read the labels - the level of "unsaturated" fats was misleading as far as to how it behaved in the body. For example: if something contained 2g of saturated fat and 4g of unsaturated fat (but the unsaturated fat was Trans-fat) it was essentially equal to 6g of saturated fat as far the body was concerned.

Now that they are requiring that Trans-Fat be reported ... there is a big scramble to "reformulate" a lot of recipes.