"Dick Margulis" > wrote

> Nancy Young wrote:

>> Yeah, I've looked at a lot of bread recipes, I don't think it's
>> common here. The baker types will correct me if I'm wrong.
>> I don't mean, does someone have this one recipe for bread
>> that uses lard, I mean in general. Always seems to be butter.

> Nancy,
>
> Because of the commercial value of labeling baked goods with "all
> vegetable shortening" or "no animal fats," etc., I think most larger
> commercial bakeries have gotten away from lard over the last half century
> that the American Heart Association has been hammering their
> anti-cholesterol messaging. It's only in the last few years that we've
> started taking a second look at the logic. (There is not necessarily a
> direct causal relationship between consuming animal fats and developing
> high cholesterol; it's more complicated than that.)

You're preaching to the choir, here.

>And so now it's trans-fats that are the bad guys. If you'll recall, they
>used to be the good guys.

Yes, when the news came out that margarine is not good for
you, my poor stepmother just cried. The news came out soon
after my father died of heart disease. She'd been feeding him
margarine rather than butter because, you know, it was better for
him.

> However, a lot of smaller bakeries (diners with homemade pies, for
> example, and whatever neighborhood bakeries may still be left) still use
> lard in piecrusts, because you really can't beat it for that.

I will say that I did know about lard and piecrusts. I don't know if
from here, or from my ex mil? I forget. The concept seemed strange
to me, animal products in, say, an apple pie, but I have heard that.

Bread? Not so much. (laugh) Okay, not at all. I wasn't talking about
commercial products, thanks for reminding me of that. Of course you
are correct.

> Lard is also the fat of choice for greasing bread pans and baking sheets,

That made me laugh, I'd greased a baking dish with Crisco once,
and Ron thought I was greasing it with cream cheese because of
the silver foil packaging. So funny.

> assuming it's not a kosher bakery. As a bread ingredient, though, I'd
> agree with you that US bakers, for the most part, don't use lard and
> haven't in a long time.

Thank you for your note.

nancy