Crisco Shortening..no Other Alternatives?
Decorating By Tolinda Updated 15 Feb 2007 , 6:55pm by jmt1714
everyones always saying that crisco is greasing and that it leaves a nasty after taste so i was just wondering. there are other brands of shortening out there, has anyone ever tried them? i'm new at baking therefore, ive neevr tried crisco before. but for my first batch of buttercream i used a no name brand veg. shortening and imo the buttercream tasted pretty good but then again i've never really tried any other buttercream so i couldn't compare. so i was wondering if anyone else has tried a different brand of shortening? would love to hear how it turned out. thanks!
I think crisco only tastes nasty if you are used to butter or KNOW it's in there. Personally, I never knew that most grocery store cakes had all crisco in their frostings and I liked it. Now that I have made a few of my own cakes (that use a little crisco, but is not the main ing) - I can totally taste it. Someone brought in store bought cupcakes today and I had to try one (you know, to compare - since I had brought cakes too) - and I TOTALLY could taste the difference. I think with most recipes you can substitute butter for Crisco but it is more pricey. I could be wrong, but I never knew buttercream could really be crisco cream.
Sounding like a commercial, "I tried a cheaper shortening once...." and I have used Crisco ONLY ever since. Yes, the brand does make a difference. My Sysco rep had me try their shortening and while it was "ok" for the cookies I made, it got a big F for my icing. It left an aftertaste and left a film on the roof of our mouths. That's when Sysco told me they can't get Crisco in 50-lb cubes because it's a non-commericial item (made for household use) and the best bulk I could get it in would be the big cans at Sams.
Melvira was going to try the Hi Ratio Shortening. It's supposed to have a different flavor than regular shortening and still hold up.
I personally use straight Crisco for my buttercream because of where I live (heat/humidity) and if you cream it first with the flavoring, it tastes fine to me.
Hi-ration shortening is AWSOME! Make the BC taste so much better and not greasy at all! Here is a very helpful thread on what hi-ratio shortening is and places where you can buy it and a couple of recipes that use it: http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-34464.html.
I personally by Alpine shortening from The Baker's Kitchen
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