The Margarine Manifesto

Here’s what you need to know in the margarine aisle!

As a nutrition expert, I’m often asked which margarine is best for toast or for baking.

I recommend, for general health reasons, that people switch to canola oil and olive oil in recipes and use less than usually called for whenever possible. These oils are more likely to contribute the better fatty acids and less of the worst fatty acids.

But there are certain situations, in the kitchen or on the table, when you want a margarine product. Buttering toast, making cookie dough, whipping up a light frosting, etc., come to mind.

When margarine is needed, I suggest choosing one that has less fat (8 grams of fat per tablespoon works well). Most of these products have water as the second ingredient and liquid canola oil, soybean oil, or olive oil as the first ingredient. If you are using margarine with more water or fewer fat grams per tablespoon than noted, it may not function well in the pan or in recipes.

Even within this guideline, better choices are available:

• Try to find margarine with the least amount of saturated fat and zero trans fat.
• Try to find margarine with omega-3 fatty acids (if canola oil is used or if fortified with omega-3 fatty acids).
• You can choose margarine with plant sterols added too. This is preferable, particularly if you or someone in your family has elevated blood cholesterol levels.

Where does this leave butter? I use whipped butter for certain recipes that call for browning butter (margarine doesn't brown, only butter does, owing to its impurities). I always use less butter than called for in the original recipe. If you use whipped butter, you’re also getting less fat per tablespoon (around 7 grams per tablespoon compared to 12 grams of fat per tablespoon with stick margarine or butter).

By Elaine Magee, MPH, RD
The Recipe Doctor Blog