What Is Shortening?

• The function of fat in baked goods is to shorten the gluten strands in the flour, changing their properties and making them easier to bind together, which is where "shortening" gets its name. In the case of shortening, which is 100 per cent fat, oxygen is incorporated into liquid fats obtained from plants, hence the word hydrogenated. The result is a more solid product that can be creamed or whipped into other ingredients or melted for use in frying.

Shortening Advantages

• As opposed to animal fats like lard and butter, shortening contains little water, which gives it a higher smoking point when heated. It remains more stable than butter in dough and batter and is more easily distributed as it takes longer to soften. This makes it ideal for use in recipes where the water content of butter would affect the texture of the final product. This is often seen in cookies made with butter that spread more and don't puff up as much due to water evaporation during baking.

One or the Other

• You can use butter-flavored shortening in any recipe where you want the flavor of butter but the baking and cooking properties of shortening. For best results, stay with recipes that call for shortening to begin with, as the switch to butter-flavored shortening won't produce any surprises. Try butter-flavored shortening in your next batch of chocolate chip or oatmeal-raisin cookies, your grandmother's tried-and-true one-egg cake or a classic buttercream frosting. Keep in mind, too, that butter-flavored shortening will alter the color of baked goods such as angel food, chiffon or white cakes.

One for the Other

• You can substitute butter-flavored shortening for the butter in many recipes, as long as you remember that this may slightly alter the texture and density of the finished product. Cookies and cakes will be puffier and thicker, while pie crust will be less flaky but will hold its shape and be easier to work with, because it won't soften if your kitchen is warm. Simply replace the butter with an equal amount of butter-flavored shortening. In all cases, you'll get that buttery flavor that would be missing if you used unflavored shortening.