Comments on: Weird Ingredients and Substituting

By: Jackie Odom Smith

Jackie Odom Smith — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 03:07:00 +0000

i’m not sure if your crumble is the same thing I call crumb topping (mine uses oatmeal, chopped pecans, on top of apples or blueberries, etc) but i have used virgin coconut oil in place of butter many times and it has always turned out good…very tasty. I have had good luck using it in many recipes. In some I use half butter and half coconut, in some just coconut oil.
I have enjoyed looking through your recipes and have printed out several to try.
I don’t and probably won’t use whey protein, but use most of the other ingredients you have listed.

By: Christina

Christina — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 17:24:00 +0000

In reply to Kelli P.

It’s probably the environmental issue you’ve heard about – a big reason many people avoid all palm products. Some countries (New Zealand and Australia) are fighting to ban it altogether, or at least have it well labeled on products.

By: Roxanne

Roxanne — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 19:14:00 +0000

Hi Kristine,
I am from Canada and love using Becel Vegan margarine. It works very well in most recipes! I also use coconut flour, Whey protien powder, spelt flour, Quinoa flour( my favorite!) . One of my least favorite and often I donot use is coconut oil . I don’t like the way it melts down and soaks everything!I don’t think any of the ingredients you name are wierd. Just have to get used to the taste and texture of the healthier versions of the food. My son is a holistic nutritionist and a chef. Most of the products you name are his staples. 🙂 Thank you.
Roxanne

By: Kristine Fretwell

Kristine Fretwell — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 19:18:00 +0000

In reply to Kelli P. Hey Kelli! I think palm oil has gotten a bad rap like coconut oil, just because of the saturated fat content. But palm oil shortening is non-hydrogenated unlike typical vegetable shortening. Also, palm kernel oil is slightly more saturated than palm oil. But its still a much better choice than any kind of regular shortening or lard that has the trans-fatty acids.

By: Kelli P

Kelli P — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 17:19:00 +0000

Thanks for this! I have a question, tho. I thought palm oil was very bad for you? I had heard that somewhere, but can’t recall where.

By: Kristine Fretwell

Kristine Fretwell — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:40:00 +0000

In reply to Amy Madden. Thanks for the feedback Amy! I'm having a hard time finding the palm shortening too, so not sure if I'll use it. Glad to know you use almond meal too...if you find it too gritty, just throw it in your blender. That should help a lot.

By: Amy Madden

Amy Madden — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:10:00 +0000

I can find pretty much all the ingredients you listed except the Palm oil shortening and almond flour (Australia only has almond meal and it tends to make things kind of gritty). I love your recipes. Especially the one’s containing oats. I don’t think you’re using anything too strange 🙂

By: Kristine Fretwell

Kristine Fretwell — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:46:00 +0000

In reply to Tracy. Hi Tracy! Thanks, so glad you liked the post. I totally like to stick to the simple stuff. Thankfully things like coconut flour are available lots of places now. Not sure how much I'll get into using it as its a tougher thing to work with, but oat flour and almond meal are super easy and work great!

By: Tracy

Tracy — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:52:00 +0000

What a great post! You explained the different flours well, I’ve always wondered about coconut flour so this definately helps. I love using coconut oil, I used it in place of butter for my snickerdoodle cookies and they turned out pretty good. They were a little harder in consistency but still tasted good. I blend my oats to make oat flour, it’s so easy! I haven’t try almond meal yet but I’m anxious to give it a try. The thing I like about your recipes is that you do keep the ingredients simple with things that people have on hand at home. Thanks!

By: Kristine Fretwell

Kristine Fretwell — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 15:49:00 +0000

In reply to Angela. Thanks Angela! I'm so glad you enjoyed the post!

By: Angela

Angela — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 13:18:00 +0000

Hi Kristine!
Great post! I love that you included whey protein in your list of ingredients because I bake with it all the time. I’m not really big into baked goods (I seem to have a bit of a sugar intolerance so anything really sweet makes me want to fall asleep!) but when I do, whey protein is usually involved. Like you, I also seem to have a love-hate relationship with dairy. Yogurt seems to be fine (YAY!) but I don’t do so well with cheese, butter and milk. Thanks for all the info on the different types of flours. I’ve been curious about trying them but wanted to know a bit more about how they compare, so this was very informative! Have a fantastic day!