WHAT DO WE MEAN BY ‘SOLID FATS’?

WHY DO WE CARE?

HOW WILL IT HELP US TO BAKE BETTER &

HAVE FUN WHILST DOING IT? ‍‍

When differentiating our fats (putting them into our neat little boxes we love to do with everything) we typically split them into two groups based on their state when left at room temperature*. Butter being the best example of a solid fat. But what others are out there?

Exploring the core trio of solid fats for baking, namely LARD, SUET and COCONUT OIL, will either be bound by the ‘old school’ recipes we know and love or by twisting butter based recipes with a play on these alternative fats. But rather than seeing the next section as recipes using ‘Butter alternatives’ I will showcase what we can do with these different fats on their own terms. They must be celebrated, even if they’ve gone out of fashion.

HOWEVER...

WHY DO YOU HATE LARD SO MUCH DEBS? WHAT’S UP WITH USING SUET?

As much as these ingredients deserve celebrating, working with them came with limitations, namely the perception of the fats themselves in the world of baking. Over and over again I asked myself, “Would there be any point in swapping these fats in if people don’t like the idea of eating said fat alternative?” A Victoria Sponge made with lard. Suet Brioche. Did your nose wrinkle? I’ve made my point. If then, these ingredients are perceived as a ‘hard sell’ in the era of modern baking, let’s lean on the classics, the familiar. AND WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY TO HAVE FUN. There is always a way in to twist things, play with them (I’m looking at Coconut Oil in particular here), now we know the limitations.

It was a challenging set of recipes in this section, but it was definitely worth the challenge.

HEARTS AND MOUTHS OPEN

* There’s science here but does it help us make a tasty bake? We will no doubt discover this when we explore these recipes…