Shortening - ???

[bubbamom]

A recipe for a cake I'd like to make for Easter calls for shortening in the frosting. Does this mean margerine or a Crisco type product? Help please.

[Mezzaluna]

They mean Crisco!

[bubbamom]

Thanks Mezzaluna, gee, if I didn't know that, maybe I should reconsider the desert! Thanks again.

[lentil]

We've subbed butter for most, if not all of the shortening. In my opinion, you might as well use shortening if the other alternative is margerine.

Post the frosting recipe and let us look at it. Someone here will know. It may be that you can use butter instead.

[bubbamom]

The cake is a white layer cake with cannoli fillig. The frosting is where I had concerns as I've never used a Crisco-type product in frosting. Here's the recipe

1 C shortening
1 C butter, softened
1 pkg (2#) confectioners sugar
3 tsp vanilla
4-5 T water

Cream shortening and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in confectioners sugar and vanilla. Add enough water to achieve a spreadable consistency.

Lentil, rest assured, my uncertainty was about the meaning of "shortening" not the merits of butter vs shortening. Just guessing by your comment about margerine, but would say we're probably on the same page with that one

[Luc_H]

Hi Bubbamom,

I would go for animal fat (Ten_derflake) rather than hydrogenated vegetable fat (like Cris_co). Still fat but just less processed.

Just a free hint/comment

Luc H.

[lentil]

[quote=bubbamom;214530
Lentil, rest assured, my uncertainty was about the meaning of "shortening" not the merits of butter vs shortening. Just guessing by your comment about margerine, but would say we're probably on the same page with that one [/QUOTE]

And that would be "Yuck"!!

Your recipe sounds good! Real good!! I don't know what to tell you about the frosting. One woman who works here swears by putting some shortening in buttercream. I would use all butter. Just a preference, I guess.

[qahtan]

I would go for all butter,,,,

Tenderflake is lard. oh yuck...... qahtan

[Luc_H]

Originally Posted by qahtan

I would go for all butter,,,,

Tenderflake is lard. oh yuck...... qahtan

Gahtan,

I would like to understand the reason for your <yuck>.
Butter and lard are much more similar then hydrogenated vegetable oil.

Butter and lard are not really processed (hydrogenated) although lard is a little to make it solid. Both are animal fat having similar (natural) saturated fat ratios and both contain cholesterol. Other then the fact butter comes from a cow and lard from a pig, they are much similar.

Lard is neutral tasting and can be just what this recipe needs so that it is not overpowered by the butter note.

Luc H.

[bubbamom]

Thanks all for your help and suggestions. I did buy a small can of Crisco but am undecided if I'll use all butter or follow the recipe. Again, a big thank you to all of you! I plan on baking this Saturday for Sunday's dinner and will let you know how it turned out.

[qahtan]

I prefer butter for the flavour, and if you are cake making or for that matter making any thing butter does not have the taste that lard has. lard has an overpowering taste, well to me at least.
Also many people cannot digest lard......
Personally I only ever use butter in every thing

qahtan

[boar_d_laze]

Bubbamom,

The frosting called for in the recipe is really a buttercream with shortening substituted for some of the butter. The typical reason for using shortening is to stabilize the product for display -- as with holiday cookies or a commercial bakery's case.

You can substitute the recipe's frosting with any vanilla buttercream you like -- without radically altering the consistency or taste, except for the better. butter. better. Oh the heck with it.

If you feel a standard buttercream is too buttery, knock down the butter a bit and replace with sweet cream. Don't worry, you won't be the first. It's common practice.

You can't swap regular lard for vegetable shortening straight across in this recipe. Shortening is different from lard in this instance because it's less dense and whips better, i.e., it holds more air. However, if you did use lard, you could cut the amount by, oh, say, 1/3; and whip the lard before addding the other ingredients. It would still be heavier, though.

I'm not sure about taste but good lard has very little and, IMO, product made with lard is typically less greasy than those made with shortening. However traditional Southern cooks have an opinion on whether they prefer (brand specific) Crisco or lard. Most prefer Crisco. But whichever they choose, is the reason is always, "less greasy."

Farmer John brand lard (manteca in the markets where it's priced best), is the most common lard in Southern California. I use it for crusts, biscuits, and much frying. Farmer John is not hydrogenated.

Some commercial lards are. If you care to know, look on the label for the word "hydrogenated" or for the trans-fat content. If there is a trans-fat content, it's been hydrogenated.

There's another type of lard sold, leaf lard. It's hard to find, costs more, comes from a different part of the animal, and must be rendered before using. Once rendered, it does the same thing. It is never hydrogenated. It's one of those ingredients you use if your name is Thomas Keller. Otherwise, not so much.

Hope this helps,
BDL

[bubbamom]

I made the cake for Easter dinner and it turned out very good. As a reminder, it was a white layer cake with canolli filling frosted with buttercream frosting. IMO, there was too much filling and the frosting was too sweet. BUT having said that, the family really liked it. But on a day that includes too much sugar (gotta luv those whipped cream eggs and jelly beans), a small piece when a long way, even with a cup of coffee.

Thanks again for the help on the frosting (which I made according to the recipe - - equal amounts of Crisco and butter). When I make this cake again, I'll cut down on the amount of filling and use all butter.

[lentil]

Your comment about the frosting being too sweet brings up a good point. How would one make a frosting less sweet? Cut back on sugar and up the fat?

What was your cannoli filling? Sounds interesting.

[bubbamom]

The cannoli filling for this cake --

16 oz cream cheese
15 oz ricotta
1 C confectioners' sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond
one 16 oz jar of maraschino cherries
1 C mini chocolate chips

Combine cream cheese and ricotta, add the confectioners' sugar and extracts. Drain and chop cherries (reserve 1 tsp of the cherry juice). Stir chopped cherries, chocolate chips and cherry juice into ricotta mixture. Refrigerate for 1 hr or until spreadable.

As to how I'd make the frosting less sweet, well, that's a good question. Perhaps the answer would be to use less of the frosting, perhaps only frosting the cake top??? I realize that this wouldn't make the frosting less sweet, but you'd be removing a lot of the sweet from the overall cake. Or, another option, I suppose, would be to eliminate the frosting all together and just dust the cake with powder sugar the same as I do when I make cannolis?