You Ask, I Answer: Palm Fruit Oil/Vegan Baking

What's your take on palm fruit oil in general, and spreads like Earth Balance in particular?

I'm interested in trying vegan baking, but I want to keep my saturated fat intake low.

The Earth Balance Web site makes palm fruit oil sound like health food, but I'm skeptical.

What do you think?

-- Lisa (last name withheld)
Phoenix, AZ

Although palm fruit oil is a healthier choice than palm kernel oil (I am amazed at how often people interchange the two!), I wouldn't classify it as a health food.

Whereas 85 percent of palm kernel oil's are saturated, palm fruit oil's fat content is divided 50/50 between saturated fats and heart-healthy monounsaturated fats.

Additionally, palm fruit oil provides higher levels of vitamin E than palm kernel oil. This is significant since one of vitamin E's roles consists of inhibiting LDL cholesterol oxidation (believed to be a considerable risk factor in the development of coronary heart disease.)

Even though palm fruit oil is one of the healthier trans-fat-free vegan alternatives for baking, you can still take further steps to decrease the amount of saturated fat in your recipes.

One of the best things you can do is substitute some of Earth Balance called for in a recipe with applesauce.

Applesauce makes for a perfect fat substitute since it cuts calories while providing a good deal of moistness (low-fat baking that simply cuts fat without using a suitable replacement tends to be dry and dense.)

Luckily, you don't need to do any math in your head -- it is a 1:1 swap!

If, for instance, your recipe calls for one cup of Earth Balance, I would recommend using half a cup of Earth Balance and a half cup of applesauce (even a 60/40 ratio would be fine.)

Have fun with your vegan creations!

PS: In the accompanying image, the palm kernel is the white center; the surrounding orange-colored fleshy part is the actual palm fruit.

You Ask, I Answer: Vegetable Oil Spreads

My dad has heart disease, and his nutritionist said he should not use Earth Balance because it contains palm fruit (i.e., palm oil).

She instead recommends those spray bottles of fake butter.

Seems to me like that's recommending a bunch of fake chemicals instead of a naturally derived product with modest amounts of saturated fat (and no trans fat).

-- Anonymous
Via the blog

Hmmm.... that's rather peculiar advice.

The key with heart disease is limiting saturated fat, not eliminating it. Additionally, focus should be placed on consumption of healthier fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated.)

Besides, all oils contain some saturated fat -- it is virtually impossible to go an entire day without having some of it in our diets.

A tablespoon of olive oil, for instance, contains 2 grams of saturated fat (10% of a day's limit.) However, it also packs in 10 grams of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats.

A tablespoon of butter, meanwhile, provides 7.5 grams of saturated fat.

Earth Balance spreads have some saturated fat (naturally occurring in the plant oils from which it is made) but also 3.5 grams of monounsaturated fat and an additional 3.5 grams of polyunsaturated fat (440 milligrams are Omega-3 fatty acids).

Artificial butter sprays, meanwhile, are fat-free.

When it comes to heart disease, consumption of monounsaturated fat (olive oil, cashes, avocado, sesame seeds, peanuts, almonds, etc.) is much more beneficial than fat avoidance.

I say go for the Earth Balance (while still minding calories, of course.)