Trans-fat-free Crisco not a new idea

Last week Crisco officially announced its newly reformulated shortening with “0 grams trans fat per serving.” Some folks have been baking with it for a while, though: Cans containing the new stuff had been quietly rotating onto grocery store shelves, according to company spokeswoman Maribeth Badertscher.

Trans fatty acids, commonly called trans fats, can raise the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Crisco joins a nationwide trend toward eliminating artificially produced trans fats in processed foods.

Trans fat-free Crisco shortening was introduced to consumers in 2004 but was discontinued because of production and performance problems. Ever since the solid shortening was first sold in 1911, it has been the home baker’s cheap, shelf-stable alternative to lard and butter. Testers and consumers say the new Crisco looks and performs like the original product in the familiar blue cans.

Badertscher says the reformulated shortening is made with more fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil and much less partially hydrogenated cottonseed and soybean oil, yielding the same amount of saturated fat per serving.