In defence of stork margarine for baking.

[Deleted User]

I have been baking cakes for well over 50 years and have used Stork for all of them.Pastry is half cookeen half stork and no one has ever complained about it.The only time butter is used is for Shortbread or butter cream then i use whatever block butter is available at the cheapest price from the supermarket .I love Lurpak Lighter but stopped buying it when the price went over £2.00 for 250 gms.Now on the odd occassion I have toast or a sanwich i use Flora as the spread but for several weeks have weaned myself off of spreads as when you have a sandwich its possible to do without the fat spread and use a scrape of mayo or cheap cream cheese instead

Ches

^^^^^ same as Jackie and for about the same time. I actually tried butter on one occasion and didn't like the taste so it was back to the Stork. Pastry is made with half Stork and half Trex and it melts in the mouth if I say so myself.

bargainhunterss

grannigrunt wrote: »

Hello all, this is my first post on the forum I was browsing this great site and came across a thread on stork marge. I cannot find it now, but had to register just so I could defend this product. As a long time and regular baker I have always used stork (tub) and have never been able to taste the stork in the baked goods. I also use the block stork in pastry, half stork and half lard (dare I say that word!). I would say that the only time I use butter is when I make shortbread.

i never use butter in baking, no real reason just always used marge! stork i think tastes the nicest, but i tend to just use whatever spread we've got in, be it flora or an own brand or whatever.

SilverBird_2

teasleym wrote: »

... May have to try different dairy free options later if my 7mth old doesn't outgrow her intolerance to dairy, but whilst she doesn't eat the cakes I'm sticking to Stork!

The 'block' one is dairy free so you can use this when making baked goods that your daughter will be eating.

SilverBird_2

As a child growing up in the 1950s it was usually 'Stork Table Margarine' at home for both baking and spreading.

I learnt to bake using the packet Stork. In the late 1960s I sent for 'The Art of Home Cooking' from The Stork Cookery Service and my copy is now well thumbed, the cover being held on with sticky tape! (My Bero cookbook is in a similar state!)

For pastry I use a half and half mix of plain and self raising flour together with packet Stork and Trex - quarter Stork to weight of flour and a bit less than a quarter Trex. It makes a nice pastry for both sweet and savoury pies.

I've always had good results using the packet Stork for making cakes, scones, pastry, buttercream, etc.

Ballymackeonan

Thanks Silverbird - you've just reminded me about my mother's copy of "The Art of Home Cookery" which I've just pulled out of the recipe books shelf. She was a notable baker - and swore by Stork (combined with large rather than medium eggs) for all her cakes. She didn't use a mixer, or even a spoon - she beat everything by hand, and swore that the warmth of her hand helped the texture!

Mine's the original edition of the book, issued to celebrate the end of rationing in 1954. It's still in one piece - only the cakes section appears to have been used a lot!

Bella79

Ive just baked a dozen butterfly buns using stork and the sponge is so delicate and light, def a thumbs up for stork !

Oh and check out there website http://www.bakewithstork.com/

There's some fab recipes on there too x

Eyeore

Another vote for stork here too and since being diagnosed as coeliac I have used with gluten free flour for my baking and no one can tell the difference!! I only use butter for cookies and shortbread

skyvicky123

Stork is great for baking FACT!! I use it for all cakes and biscuits except shortbread and my cakes are most definitely more moist than when I used butter.

IMO it would not be economical to use butter at the price it is now even if I wanted to.

Stork for Twinks hobnobs is perfect too. Used Stork in flapjacks the other day and the best batch I have ever made.

In short - I HEART STORK!!

freyasmum

Bitsy_Beans wrote: »

In an ideal world (or in Nigella's ) I'd use butter for all my baking. But since I can't afford it and I do a fair amount of cooking and therefore cannot afford the increased cost. So it's stork or Sainsbury's marg for me - although not the basic spread as it states on that it's not suitable for baking eek!

Ooh, ooh, I know this one!!


It's because it's made with more water, which would upset the water/fat balance. When you cream the sugar and fat together, the sugar creates air pockets in the fat. When baking, these expand and the egg proteins coagulate and set around them and that's what gives the cake it's structure. Using a basics spread - or a low fat one - the water would evaporate before the eggy bubbles had, had a chance to set and the cake would sink and be heavy,

Marg can give a slightly lighter cake (animal based fats give larger bubbles, which can escape easier; vegetable fats smaller, easier trapped ones), whereas butter gives it a better flavour.

I generally use butter, as that's what I buy (I don't enjoy the taste or marg as a spread ) but if I have stork in, then I'll use whatever comes to hand first; I've made delicious madeira cakes with stork and no-one's known the difference. The only exception is shortbread - there are so few ingredients, that it's important (IMO) to use the best tasting ingredients.

It's all personal preference

ETA: I buy butter on offer - I bought a freezer drawer's worth when it was 50p/block in Asda recently