Cookie party question
Let me preface this by saying that I just don't like Crisco and I'm not a fan of margarine either. I'd like to have a cookie party, though, and I know some of my friends use either of those in baking (even though some call the margarine "butter"). Is there a nice way of asking people to only use butter for their cookies, or should I just deal with what I get? :)
Chocolatechipkt
Dec 04, 2007 08:59AM
Well, in the past, if I'm hosting an iron chef for example, I have a strong aversion to cilantro, so I've just told people to please not use it in their recipe and people understand, since they're my friends. I'd imagine you could do the same with your cookies.
You could also incorporate it into the theme--e.g. a "butter" cookie party, but then you wouldn't get meringues.
Another more subtle way might be to ask each person to print out a recipe, and then you can avoid the ones w/ shortening.
I'm not a fan of margarine/shortening, either and am trying to steer clear of them b/c of trans fats, but I think that during this time of the year, a certain amount is inevitable. I have your same dilemma with pie crusts.
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I like the idea of bringing the recipes -- that way it's clear, without being obvious. I'm trying to avoid trans fats too, but I agree that a certain amount, esp. at this time, of year, is going to happen. Thanks for the idea!
I make all-butter pie crusts btw -- I've never made them using the alternatives, so I don't know what I'm missing, I guess. Lately I've been using a variation on the Barefoot Contessa's pie crust used in her Perfect Apple Pie recipe (using all butter instead of butter and veg. shortening).
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Hm, people can print out or copy the original recipe, and then not note that they substited margerine for the butter. Because to these people, generally, there is no significant difference between the two. Or they always sub margerine, think it's the obvious thing to do, and figure everyone else reads "butter" as "actually margerine" too.
My friend organized a cookie exchange and provided recipes to the non-bakers (they wanted to participate but weren't sure what to bake, etc). She thought this was a sure-fire way to get good cookies. Nope. They used margerine, crappy chocolate, maybe artifical vanilla.... whatever, her share of the results went in the garbage. I think you need to figure out if you want the social, group experienceg of sharing baking, or the chow. If you want the chow, limit your guest list or ask non-bakers to bring something else. It's like any other potluck really - you can only control the results so much.
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Personally, I would be seriously offended if someone asked me to bring something to a party and told me how to cook it. If you value your invitees more than the food, make a batch your way so you have something to munch on and graciously accept whatever your guests bring along. If the cookies are really really important to you, make several different kinds that you like and just invite people to help you eat them.
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I do have people over for cookies actually and I bring lots in to work etc, but I've always thought the idea of a cookie party would be fun. I don't want to be mean, I was just wondering *if* there was a nice way of suggesting that. Thanks for your response!
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Oh, I meant like if you make the party a cookie exchange-type thing, I don't think it's rude to ask people to supply recipes along with their cookies (I'd certainly want them!).
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I don't think there is a nice way to do this. Kind of goes against the season.
Why not ask everyone to bring enough copies of their recipe to pass around too, then you can avoid eating the cookies that have the ingredients that offend you.
But have the party... butter or margarine or Crisco... it's the people and the fun that will make you happy.
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Alton Brown had a wonderful episode recently on chocolate chip cookies. He showed how changing the fats could produce different cookies to suit preferences - crispy, chewy or cakey - by using all butter, a mix of butter and margarine, some shortening, I can't remember exactly what. Each of the fats had a different melting point and there was a specific reason for using each one of them. I believe that he might have changed the amounts of baking soda and/or powder as well.
He did a similar comparison on the science of fats in the episode on biscuits.
Granted, if I'm going to spread it on bread or eat it outright, give me that butter, but there's a good reason for using alternative fats in some baking. Some old family recipes use them and don't perform the same way without them.
If it just doesn't taste like "Grandma's wonderful cookies" without the margarine that she started using during WWII and that everyone has loved since then, why would somebody meddle with a proven winner of a recipe?
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There is a very polite way. You supply the butter.
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Robin, I was going to post this w/o reading the previous response, but I see that you have the same idea.
You could purchase 4-5 lb boxes of store brand or Land-o-Lakes unsalted butter, and let everyone know is it communal use, and doing the same with a small bottle of Nielsen Massey vanilla could be a subterfuge to cover your true motives of anti-margarine.
I think that asking them to do otherwise could be taken as offensive.
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I would be offended if you told me what to use or not use in my recipe. I don't like walnuts, but I would never tell my guests "I don't care for walnuts, so please use almonds instead". Using butter in baking gives a different result that Crisco and margarine -- it can alter the way an item bakes up and changes its texture.
I'd be a gracious host, and just try a small bite from everyone's cookies to show my appreciation. Unless you have some sort of allergy to margarine, that would be a polite thing to do.
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Yep, the different fats do have different effects. I was just asking for opinions ... not planning on doing telling people what to do. Thanks for your response!
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Yes, you should just deal with what you get! You may not even be able to tell which has butter and which doesn't, unless you have a very sensitive palate. My daughter can tell you practically every single ingredient in every recipe, but if you aren't like that, then remember "ignorance is bliss."
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Thanks for your replies everyone! I wouldn't ever have actually told people what to use or not to use, barring allergies, but I was just curious if it was possible. I was thinking that I'd seen this addressed on some show before, but now I think the question might have about how to get people to make their own cookies, vs. slicing and baking (shrug). Thanks again!
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What about having a cookie baking party instead? You provide the ingredients and the recipes, invite friends over to get floury, and everyone takes home a dozen. That seems like the only polite way to avoid Crisco or margarine.
I'm actually one of those rare people who's senstive to most margarine and shortening, as they often cause shortness of breath. Cookie swaps are therefore not a great idea for me. I've participated and given away the cookies. There was not a one made with real butter that year.
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Even though I love making cookies & such, I could never participate in a cookie party due to my corn allergy- I've always wanted to though. In a fun sort of way, you could do a cookie party with a Paula Dean theme, using her trademark tag line of "everything taste better with a stick of butter" -lol. It might give them a suttle hint to use real butter & you could even incorporate watching an episode of Paula Dean into your party activities. That's about the only way I can think of to tastefully push real butter.
This site has great ideas on cookie parties, and even though the rules sound a little harsh, they do make a lot of sense: http://www.robinsweb.com/cookies/cook...
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While I follow those rules, I'd decline an invitation that had them explicitly stated like that.
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Maybe it's just me, but isn't it a little rude to dictate what people should use in their recipes? I'd understand if it was an allergy, I suppose, but in the context of a cookie exchange party, I would find it incredibly snobby if someone said "please use only real butter in your cookies because I don't care for crisco or margarine". I've always thought that part of graciously accepting things that people offer freely was just that - graciously accepting them gift and the feelings behind it, not putting conditions on what people give. It's a cliche, but "it's the thought that counts" - if you don't like the cookies you get, toss them in the trash when you get home.
Oh, and in every cookie exchange I've ever done (and we've been doing them for years), we always print out a copy of our recipe for everyone in attendance.
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It's presumptuous to believe that butter always works best in every recipe. There are many recipes that produce better results with shortening, margarine, or even oils such as olive oil or plain vegetable oil.
Professionals such as Alton Brown and Shirley Corriher have published comparative recipes clearly showing it. Many traditional recipes use fats other than butter.
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