bakingbuyer - November 2011 - (Page 52)

Torrance Bakery uses all butter in their buttercream. regular chocolate chip cookie, add 30% to it and you’ll get a very nice cookie.” Zero Trans Fat Icings There’s no secret about the role that trans fats play in the country’s struggle with obesity, with FDA research linking trans fats to elevated LDL, or “bad” cholesterol and heart disease. From food labeling regulations from the FDA, to banning trans fats from foodservice establishments in states such as California, the government is waging a war on partially hydrogenated oils, all in the name of better health. But there is a flip side to this trans fat business, in that it plays a part in the taste and quality of cake icings. So how can bakers meet standards for good quality and taste while offering healthier products? For some, it’s weighing the pros and cons of each, and coming to a happy medium. But bakeries in California have no choice. At the beginning of 2011, bakeries such as Torrance Bakery in Torrance, CA, were forced to eliminate trans fats from their product offerings. In compliance, the biggest change owner Kirk Rossberg has made with cake icings is to make the move to all butter.“The good part about it is that I think our stuff tastes a lot better than it used to,” Rossberg says. Although he always used butter in his buttercream, he’d often cut it with various shortenings. By moving to all butter, he’s greatly improved the taste. That’s not to say the improvement didn’t come with its share of troubleshooting, especially learning to adjust for the high water content that comes with all-natural butter. “You have to either eliminate your water or get a butter that has a much lower water content to it,” he says. Another problem Rossberg has had to overcome is in that butter isn’t as flexible as the shortenings, and therefore has a little more propensity to crack. He suggests using heavy-duty cake boards and boxes to provide that additional support. Back east, while city regulations in places like Philadelphia have affected foodservice operators, Kretchmar’s Bakery in Beaver, PA, has remained unaffected by legislation. While they do use one non trans fat non-dairy whipped topping for some of their cakes, they continue to use traditional shortenings for their icing bases. Hypothetically, if he were forced to drop trans fats from his formulas, Lincoln Kretchmar would probably go the same route as Rossberg. “If all of a sudden tomorrow, Pennsylvania decided to pass a law against trans fats, we’d probably go to all butter with our French Buttercream,” Kretchmar says. “But we haven’t really done any testing on it, and to be honest, I’d be concerned about the stability.” Until that day comes, though, Kretchmar plans to tackle the health issue through portion control. “Mass consumption of anything is going to lead to health problems, in my estimation,” Kretchmar says. “Moderation is the key—moderation and variety.” It’s, in part, that belief in moderation that leads Rossberg to a 52 · BAKING BUYER · NOVEMBER 11 http://www.erikarecord.com http://www.erikarecord.com

bakingbuyer - November 2011

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