Shortbread with coconut oil

[Juba]

Hi folks,

Is it OK to make shortbread with ghee in stead coconut oil? Or could we add coconut powder and mix it with ghee if we do not have coconut oil?

Yeah, I used all ghee the first time and it works. I think people are using the coconut oil so they can get the healthy benefits of it.

I don't know what you mean by your second question. The xylitol/sugar is mixed with the ghee/coconut oil to make a "cream", and you can use coconut powder/flour with the buckwheat. I've used a 3:1 ratio of buckwheat to coconut flour and it worked, but I cannot say yet if a 2:1 or 1:1 ratio will work.

Edit: added

I was also thinking about using this recipe as a cereal! You could crumble the biscuits up and if it were the right texture, I think it would be a good cereal. You could add cocoa powder to it, and make some buckwheat milk. Cereal is one thing I miss, the closest I have come to it is making a porridge out of blended buckwheat.

Hi 3D Sudent

I asked second question because it's hard to find quality coconut oil in Croatia. Perhaps I could add some of coconut powder in buckwheat flour (coconut powder still contains a lot of coconut oil in it) and to use ghee in stead of coconut oil. I know I'll have to experiment a bit and see how to find perfect ratio between ingredients, perhaps for beginning I could put 3 spoons of coconut powder in the mixture and take out 3 spoons of buckwheat flour when working with ghee...,...

Not bad idea with cereal combination.

 

[Regulattor]

I asked second question because it's hard to find quality coconut oil in Croatia. Perhaps I could add some of coconut powder in buckwheat flour (coconut powder still contains a lot of coconut oil in it) and to use ghee in stead of coconut oil. I know I'll have to experiment a bit and see how to find perfect ratio between ingredients, perhaps for beginning I could put 3 spoons of coconut powder in the mixture and take out 3 spoons of buckwheat flour when working with ghee...,...

Not bad idea with cereal combination.

Hi Ljubica, have you checked this store? _http://www.cocolocori.com/ I thik you will find there good qualitiy coconut oil for reasonable price.

 

[istina]

Thank you Regulattor ! :)


(btw. mods: I can't use "insert quote" or "spell check" since last sunday !?)

 

[Jacques]

Thank you Regulattor ! :)


(btw. mods: I can't use "insert quote" or "spell check" since last sunday !?)

Have alook at that thread.

And as Vulcan59 said :

Well I don't see the problem from my end. So perhaps it's a problem at your end. Try clearing your browser's cache and see if that solves the issue. It could be related to the recent upgrade of SMF here but I went to the SMF forum and had a look if others are reporting the same issue and I haven't found any yet. :/

 

[Juba]

I asked second question because it's hard to find quality coconut oil in Croatia. Perhaps I could add some of coconut powder in buckwheat flour (coconut powder still contains a lot of coconut oil in it) and to use ghee in stead of coconut oil. I know I'll have to experiment a bit and see how to find perfect ratio between ingredients, perhaps for beginning I could put 3 spoons of coconut powder in the mixture and take out 3 spoons of buckwheat flour when working with ghee...,...

Not bad idea with cereal combination.

Hi Ljubica, have you checked this store? _http://www.cocolocori.com/ I thik you will find there good qualitiy coconut oil for reasonable price.

That's great, thank you Regulator :).

 

[Nević Nenad]

Many of you with inflammation issues will discover a serious reduction in pain and swelling by reducing or eliminating sugar intake. Plus, xylitol tends to suppress/destroy candida.

As my girlfriend explained it to me (she is my authority for that maters :) ) People think that they need sugar because they love sweets, but the truth is that they need sugar because it is "fast" energy. And they need that extra energy because they don't intake the real energy in enough quantities. The real energy as I have understand is animal proteins and fats. People think that they will get fat with meat and fats, and take "lighter" food (usually food that media told them are good and healthy), and thus "deadly switch" because that food don't have enough energy and they eat "sweets". And there is another deadly switch, when they realize that sugar is also bad, and starts to eat chemical sweeteners, and they are real poison. So, solution would be eating more fats and meat at the meals if you need it, so you will not have "sweet craving" between the meals. Works for me ;)

 

[3DStudent]

Perhaps I could add some of coconut powder in buckwheat flour (coconut powder still contains a lot of coconut oil in it) and to use ghee in stead of coconut oil.

I think that would work. The coconut oil isn't necessary, you can use all ghee if you need to. And I don't think the coconut powder added to the buckwheat will hurt them, they will just taste more like coconuts than buckwheat.

 

[SolarMother]

Great recipe SolarMother, lemon curd is delicious. I've been using an equivalent version with the shortbread with coconut biscuits I made. I'm going to have another go at making them with a reduced amount of coconut oil - although it may just be a matter of acquired taste.

In a double boiler, melt butter (or make ghee that equals 1/4 lb or 1/2 cup) ...

1 cup of butter reduces to about 3/4 cup of ghee.

Hi Trevrizent~ Glad you enjoyed the lemon curd. I am going to try making it with Xylitol next time.
I have a question for you--I just used your recipe for Scottish shortbread--I doubled the recipe, and maybe I did something wrong perhaps not use enough ghee or coconut oil (I combined the 2= total of 12 tbsp--with one cup quinoa flour and one cup coconut flour) following the recipe carefully...
So, when I took the balls of dough out of the fridge after an hour, they were hard as rocks. So I sliced a piece and it was a little crumbly, but I went ahead and put the slices on a tray and into the oven at 300degree F. They're in there now, and I am wondering if they will turn out. I think that if I had let the balls warm up, they would have not been roll-able into a sheet--they would have been too dry. Didn't have arrowroot powder, so I used Xantham gum which is supposed to hold gluten-free recipes together...seems that if the balls are crumbly, there is not enough ghee/butter or coconut oil? Oh, well...I bet they will be quite edible anyway.

 

[Laura]

Don't use xantham gum in shortbread. Heck, I used to use it for a few things but just don't anymore. No point in using it in shortbread anyway since no liquid is supposed to be added other than creamed butter/ghee/oil and you would need liquid to dissolve and activate the gum.

I don't refrigerate the shortbread, I get it to where it feels right and put it directly in the cookie pan and roll it with plastic wrap over it until it is totally flat and smooth. Then I cut it into squares before putting in the oven.

 

[Ollie]

Hi Trevrizent~ Glad you enjoyed the lemon curd. I am going to try making it with Xylitol next time.
I have a question for you--I just used your recipe for Scottish shortbread--I doubled the recipe, and maybe I did something wrong perhaps not use enough ghee or coconut oil (I combined the 2= total of 12 tbsp--with one cup quinoa flour and one cup coconut flour) following the recipe carefully...
So, when I took the balls of dough out of the fridge after an hour, they were hard as rocks. So I sliced a piece and it was a little crumbly, but I went ahead and put the slices on a tray and into the oven at 300degree F. They're in there now, and I am wondering if they will turn out. I think that if I had let the balls warm up, they would have not been roll-able into a sheet--they would have been too dry. Didn't have arrowroot powder, so I used Xantham gum which is supposed to hold gluten-free recipes together...seems that if the balls are crumbly, there is not enough ghee/butter or coconut oil? Oh, well...I bet they will be quite edible anyway.

Quinoa flour and coconut flour are quite dense, so would tend to be hard and crumbly on coming out of the fridge. Buckwheat can be too. On taking it out of the fridge, rather than waiting for it to warm up, what I do is work it in my hands to soften it up, and rolling it - again just to soften it up - then, kneeding it into a ball until it is soft and malleable enough for rolling. Freezing helps the oils and Xylitol spread into the buckwheat, I think. What I've found with buckwheat type dough mixes is that there rolling capability improves after 'working' - going from dry to moist. Then to use plenty of flours when rolling it out.

The arrowroot powder is not for holding the dough together but for lightness. If you can tolerate it tapioca flour (starch) will do the job.

 

[SolarMother]

TV

Quinoa flour and coconut flour are quite dense, so would tend to be hard and crumbly on coming out of the fridge. Buckwheat can be too. On taking it out of the fridge, rather than waiting for it to warm up, what I do is work it in my hands to soften it up, and rolling it - again just to soften it up - then, kneeding it into a ball until it is soft and malleable enough for rolling. Freezing helps the oils and Xylitol spread into the buckwheat, I think. What I've found with buckwheat type dough mixes is that there rolling capability improves after 'working' - going from dry to moist. Then to use plenty of flours when rolling it out.

The arrowroot powder is not for holding the dough together but for lightness. If you can tolerate it tapioca flour (starch) will do the job.

Thank you for the important baking pointers! Apparently, when it comes to baking with buckwheat (or quinoa and other 'exotic' flours) it's an art one has to learn! And that's a creative endeavor for me since I like baking. The shortbread turned out very delicious despite the boo-boos, and I served it with glazed strawberries. To die for!

 

[Stevie]

Talking of coconut oil, just seen this really interesting article on Sott:

Is coconut oil the secret cure for Alzheimer's disease?

Newport began researching the mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease in the hopes of finding alternative treatments. She learned that researchers attribute many of the disease's symptoms to the starvation of certain brain cells due to an inability to process glucose.

Researchers have wondered if supplying the brain with more energy from an alternative supply known as ketones might prevent this cell death and thereby halt the disease. The easiest way to get the body to produce ketones is to consume medium-chain triglycerides (MCT), a type of fat.

Newport learned that MCT oil derived from coconut or palm kernel oil has shown great promise in treating Alzheimer's, so she began feeding coconut oil to her husband. Within two days, he was showing signs of improvement. Within 60 days, he was once again alert, happy and making jokes. Within a year, he regained the ability to complete self-directed tasks and to run, and experienced great improvements in reading comprehension and short-term memory.

Scans confirm that the atrophy in his brain has come to a complete halt.

To think how we're all told to avoid fats, that they're slowly killing us.. mmmm? I've been including coconut oil in my diet for a few months now and feel a lot better (well along with other dietary changes) than I did this time last year. Think i'll make sure to take coconut oil daily.

S

 

[T.C.]

Thanks for the recipe, Laura. These were made with 100% zylitol. I halved all the quantities, but rather than use a kilo of flour, I used between 700 and 800 grams. The mix was starting to get quite dry. I can't believe how good the result was, how well it cooked, and how good they taste!

 

[SolarMother]

TC

Thanks for the recipe, Laura. These were made with 100% zylitol. I halved all the quantities, but rather than use a kilo of flour, I used between 700 and 800 grams. The mix was starting to get quite dry. I can't believe how good the result was, how well it cooked, and how good they taste!

WOW, TC! They look perfect. It's time for another batch around here.

 

[Laura]

Yup, that's it! Yours look exactly like mine!