Thats a long winded title, but has anyone noticed that they have to be chilled to stay firm? my solution is agar-agar powder. this way you can leave them out at a party or give them away as a gift. enjoy!
http://planthappylife.blogspot.com/2011/11/alicia-silverstones-peanut-butter-cups.html
Is there a difference between the palm oil used by earth balance and the palm oil used by spectum shortening?
Well, spectrum is organic, so I think its better than the non-organic means of production. Sort of like soy is bad if its GMO, but not if its organic. But I'm no expert! I'd love to know more about the subject.
I usually opt for the organic earth balance, so I'm guessing it's pretty similar :) I've been meaning to try the peanut butter cups, so I may have to get myself some agar agar powder to add to them.
I didn't know there was an organic earth balance! Here is an article I found. Basically what I take is that palm oil should be organic and used in moderation.
http://www.veganbaking.net/vegan-baking-articles/articles-and-guides/the-problem-with-palm-oil.html
according to the earth balance website, only 30 percent of their palm is organic. it looks like spectrum has the better record of sustainabiltiy. i stopped using earth balance a while ago. when i need to use a solid oil, i use coconut oil, and just recently started using spectrum shortenning, which is pure organic palm oil. both are tropical oils that don't need to by hydrogenated. as for toast, i recently discovered the joys of toast with coconut oil and a sprinkle of himalayan sea salt. its soo delicious! i also like to add jam and a little peanut butter. its intoxicating. i know its a bummer to know these things about our beloved earth balance, but if it helps you stay vegan, i wouldn't beat yourself up! I also stopped using tofutti sour cream and use cashew cream instead. once again, its a bummer I know!
Here's the earth balance I use:
http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/#/products/organic/
Maybe I'll try the spectrum shortening next time I need something buttery for baking and see how it works for me. I love coconut oil! I usually sub it for canola oil or vegetable oil in recipes. I've been meaning to try it on popcorn as well, although I've been too lazy to attempt to make popcorn on the stove top thus far. Cashew cream sounds delicious. Do you buy it or make it?
Thanks for the link to the article! It has a lot of great info :) It does sound like Spectum has their act together much better than Earth Balance.
As far as i'm concerned, its a complicated issue that is a personal choice. At the end of the day, we are eating a plant based and feeling much better for it! And that is what is important. I make a cashew based ranch dressing that is on my blog. if you don't add the seasonings, it would just be a cashew cream. I use cashews for everything now!
Cool! I'm going to try the cashew cream next time get my hands on some raw cashews. It looks pretty simple :)
If I remember correctly from the last time I made them I used less "butter" and a bit more graham cracker and that fixed the problem. Though the first batch was stinkin' delicious they were terribly oily and greasy and the oil soaked through the paper cups I froze them in. (I had made them for a get together with a friend and I'm so thankful he's not one to really care about the looks of things but more concerned about taste! They were embarassing to serve and they need to be re worked.) So less "butter" and more graham cracker. You'll have to trial and error as it's been awhile and I don't remember how much exactly I used of each. HTH
agar-agar works awesome! here is another use for agar-agar. http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/peanut-butter-krispy-treats-recipe.html
feel like a real candy maker when I use it. If you look on the ingredients to many candies, they have to use stabilizers too. i love being able to leave them out, and they stay in the exact shape of the paper, no glob of peanut butter. i can put them in a candy box and they look very elegant!
Smurphy, I hope you make the ranch dressing! its very easy, especially if you keep lemon cubes on hand!
Awesome!
Agar agar is my new favorite secret trick to sooooo many things!
Mary