Butter and Shortening

• Butter, which is about 80 percent milkfat, contains three forms of fat: half is saturated, slightly more than a quarter is monounsaturated and the rest is polyunsaturated. It contains cholesterol, but also offers some calcium, potassium and a lot of vitamin A. Betty Crocker notes that it’s best used in products where you want the flavor of the butter to come through, such as sugar cookies and shortbread. Shortening, another common baking fat, is 100 percent fat and contains unhealthy trans fats, as it’s made from hydrogenated oils. While butter can separate at warm temperatures, shortening is more stable and it’s better for recipes such as flaky pie crusts and buttercream icing.

Margarine and Reduced-Fat Spreads

• Using margarine or reduced-fat spread will reduce the calories and saturated fat grams in your baked goods, but it’s never the preferred fat for baking unless you’re very concerned about those numbers. If you’re choosing margarine over butter, look for an option that contains at least 60 percent fat and does not contain trans fats. King Arthur Flour refers to margarine as an “inferior compromise” and says it does not match butter’s flavor or shortening’s high melting point.

Liquid Fats

• Oils vary greatly in their breakdown of fat. While coconut oil contains 92 percent saturated fat, canola oil is just 7.6 percent saturated fat. Liquid fats are best used in baked goods that don’t require creaming, or beating air into the fat, or those that require structure, such as a cake or a cookie. Liquid fats do affect gluten strands, so it’s preferable to use them in sandwich breads, muffins or quick breads. Choose fats that have an unobtrusive flavor, such as canola oil.

Fat Substitutes

• If you want to reduce the fat in a recipe, the Food Network recommends simply cutting back on the called-for fat. If you want to reduce the fat even further, you can substitute half of the butter in a recipe with a pureed fruit, such as mashed bananas or prunes; if you are using liquid oil, substitute half with applesauce. However, all changes to a recipe can affect the end result. "Cooking Light" test kitchens director Vanessa Johnson says baked goods made with fruit purees have an inferior texture and taste, so this isn't preferred for baking. Another way to reduce fat content without changing the recipe’s main source of fat is substituting skim milk for whole or using low-fat cream cheese in place of the full-fat version.