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Thu 15 Jan, 2004 01:47 pm
I'm planning on making "Double Apple Pie" from Nigella Lawson's cookbook: "How to be a Domestic Goddess" this weekend, but the recipe calls for vegetable shortening (and gives a brandname of Trex as one acceptable brand).
However, when I went to the local safeway I couldn't find it. When I asked an employee where I could find vegetable shortening he asked me what it was. I thought that this was probably not a good sign. After explaining that it was a vegetable fat product that was used in baking and that it resembled butter he went off to ask someone and eventually came back and handed me a box of vegetable suet.
I am about 90% sure that vegetable suet is not in the least what I am looking for, and I did not in fact buy it.
If I was in my hometown of Toronto I know I'd just buy some crisco, but is vegetable shortening a product which I am going to have a hard time getting my hands on in London? And if so, are there any good substitutes?
Thanks
Toby
Haven't heard of 'veg suet' to date, but there is a great deal of diversity in the naming of foodstuffs.
Suet refers to a saturated fat from beef, so we're talking about substituting one of the highly saturated vegetable fats. That brings to mind either:
-palm oil
-palm-kernal oil
-cophra (coconut oil)
-cottonseed
-possibly, ghee
I have used cophra myself with good results. Not sure why you need it for a pie, it's more of the 'Two Fat Ladies' sort of cookery. I think the luscious Nigella is just adapting a recipe for vegies (unless it actually goes IN the pie, I'm just assuming it's for the crust).
Lard has the same consistancy but yeah, I'd use crisco too.
I'd go for Crisco.... but I take it they don't have that in London?
although possibly I'd use lard. I know it isn't vegetable, but I might actually be healthier than hydrogenated trans fatty stuff, and Crisco might be that. I have read some article saying that lard and butter aren't as bad as all the hydrogenated trans fats.
Never use lard, unless you feel that your arteries aren't quite as hard and as blocked as you like! All the substitutes I have listed are not hydrogenated (like margarine) and are a better bet than straight dripping.
Just get your taste buds used to the flavours of vegetable oils, there's no real need for super-saturated fats in your diet anyway.
BTW: when I do make pastry I use butter as the shortening, no complaints yet.
cant beat good ole LARD. it makes the pie crust crustier, it makes fried foods taste great, its full of flavor. the heart thing is a concern , but since when are we afraid of our food?
Well, I don't think one piece of pie with lard will put you over the bend, but I probably wouldn't use it since I have never had any in my house, being a longtime lard avoider myself.. Still, whatever medical article I read on this made no distinction between lard and butter, and farmerman is right about the great piecrusts...
.
Well after checking out the local Sainsburys, Safeway, Somerfield and M&S food I can safely say that there is no vegetable shortening in my area of London.
I can order it from Sainsburys or Tesco online but I'm not about to pay 5 pounds delivery charghe for an 85 pence item.
From what I've seen online I can just substitute butter without too much harm being done to the pie crust.
Thanks for all the responses!
Toby
Make sure the butter isn't salty and preferably light in colour. Otherwise, I know from experience, your crust will be yellow and salty. Not a great pie crust experience.
I used light coloured, unsalted butter and the pie crust was fine. Nice and light, fairly flaky.
You don't happen to have the lovely Nigella's email or mobile number?
Trouble is I'm never that interested in consuming calories when I see her, just wasting them in a pointless, but satisfying manner.... :wink:
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