Manischewitz Dairy Free Rich & Creamy Frosting
I was pretty excited to hear that Manischewitz — well, that anyone — would be making a ready-to-use pareve frosting, since the supermarket shelves are dominated by dairy frostings ($237-million worth, in fact), which are altogether useless in my kitchen. Frankly, I rarely if ever use frosting of any gender, but for those arms-extended, zombie-voiced, must-have-cupcake moments, non-dairy frosting is far more versatile.
Thanks to the fine folks at Manischewitz, I got my hands on a sample container of their chocolate variety (vanilla is also available, $2.29 for 12 ounces) and cracked open my unnecessarily secret stash of Duncan Hines cake mixes for a cupcake bonanza. The frosting was “rich and creamy” as the labeling promised, and it had a thoroughly pleasing chocolate flavor. It spread nicely, not too thick, not too thin, and the remaining frosting is perfectly happy sitting in the cupboard (refrigeration not required) until its next use, any number of months from now.
That is, if I’d ever use it again. You see, despite all this frosting has going for it, the King of Passover Foods has deigned to combine the worst possible Kosher for Passover vegetable oil — cottonseed — with the worst possible method for solidifying it — partial hydrogenation.
For those unfamiliar with the state of nutritional science today, cottonseed oil is in fact an industrial byproduct. After cotton lint has been removed from the cotton seed, the seed is refined to remove its naturally-occurring toxins. (Without refining, the oil is actually used as a pesticide.) It contains a startlingly unhealthy ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 fatty acids, so what better process to perform on it for use in kosher food than… hydrogenation!
Hydrogenation is a now disgraced process, patented by German chemist Wilhelm Normann in 1903, which is used to convert liquid oils (unsaturated fats) into solid and semisolid shortenings (trans fats). As beneficial as trans fats are for the commercial baking industry — longer shelf life, higher melting point, better texture — they have been proven to be detrimental to heart health even in minuscule amounts.
I would imagine that, thanks to heimishe kosher food manufacturers, the frum community consumes far more than its fair share of partially-hydrogenated cottonseed oil, and thus enjoys more than its fair share of coronary heart disease. That’s why I get so worked up, because I care.
(Please give me a moment as I step off my horse. It’s harder to dismount from these high ones.)
In summary, Manischewitz has succeeded in producing a pareve frosting that spreads well, tastes good, needs no refrigeration, and will slowly but surely eat away your heart. Consider this review an earnest request for the elimination of both cottonseed oil and trans fats from all Manischewitz products.
As an alternative, try this chocolate frosting recipe from Epicurious, using standard kosher conversions. Grab a stick of Earth Balance, and leave it on the counter a while to get warm. Proceed as directed, and add just enough rice milk for your desired consistency instead of the cream.
I am also surprised with all the literature about hydrogenated oils being bad and all the companies that tout”no trans fats” on their packaging that kosher companies are still producing these items. I guess the law of do not place an obstacle in front of a blind person does not apply.
Just so everyone knows it’s not just the Jews with guilt — Duncan Hines frosting also contains partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil (with soybean oil too). Also, although it is labeled OU-D, it may actually just be Dairy Equipment. A quick email to the OU (which I have not done) would confirm if it’s actually dairy or just DE. If it’s the latter, then you can still serve it after a meat meal, just on dairy dishes.
The link to the NEJM article that you claim “proved” that trans fats “to be detrimental to heart health even in minuscule amounts” requires a paid subscription. Do you have one, and if so can you post a fair-use extract of the relevant portion?
In the meantime, here’s a critique of an earlier NEJM editorial on trans fats, and here’s some more on the subject.
While it’s true that partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil isn’t ideal, the exact same thing could be said for “partially hydrogenated” anything. In fact, cottonseed oil is one of the few oils that doesn’t have to be partially hydrogenated as often.
Wikipedia is totally wrong regarding cottonseed oil. While it’s normally a reliable source, that entry is just flat inaccurate. Cottonseed oil is NOT an “industrial byproduct” – it’s a vegetable oil, just like corn, canola, etc. Did you know that the cotton crop actually grows on trees? Yes, cotton is a tree, thus the oil is pressed from a treenut. Cottonseed oil was our country’s original vegetable oil of choice – only due to massive subsidization of soybeans did cottonseed oil fall in use (subsidization of soybeans drove up supply, making it MUCH cheaper)… sorry for the lecture, but just thought I’d provide a little insight into a topic I know quite well.
For the benefit of our readers, it should be pointed out that Amy knows cottonseed oil “quite well” because she works in public relations for the cotton industry.
Hi, Milhouse– Sorry about that link, I must have included it while at the office (the hospital at which I work has an electronic subscription to NEJM). Rest assured, I’ll download and post the article when I’m there next (off for the holiday at the moment). Happy 4th!
For the moment, here’s a link to the article’s summary. It’s a review piece by physicians and researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard Medical School, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, and Wageningen University in the Netherlands. It neatly summarizes what the medical literature has to say about the matter, and includes suggestions on how to reduce intake with expected benefits from such reduction.
Thanks. And right there on top I see that two of the authors are Ascherio and Willet, the same two, one or both of whose names are on almost every article critical of trans fats. How about some independent confirmation that this doesn’t just exist in their heads? If this were real, shouldn’t there be many independent researchers coming up with similar results?
Thank you for putting my long-unanswered question to rest! I have been in touch with the people at Manischewitz many times. They have been ever so helpful, only to never respond again whenever I have inquired, “Do your new dairy-free frostings contain hydrogenated oils?” They aren’t yet sold in my area, and I had added them to our product lists, without this confirmation. They will soon be removed! Thanks again – http://www.godairyfree.org.
I have been making pareve cake-decorating frosting from Crisco for years. I’d like to switch to the new, non-TransFat version:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16795455/
Has anyone tried it? It has 0g. Transfat and uses “fully hydrogenated” fats, instead.
(It’d be nice if the birthday cakes I make wouldn’t reduce the likelihood of future similar celebrations.)
There is no reason to use a harmfull extract(cottonseed oil) from an inedible plant in food. Not only is it a harmfull fat, it is also an allergan. It can be an occult cause of shortness of breath, bloating and tachycardia. In fact I am allergic to it.
BS”D
Then don’t eat it, Marty. I’m not allergic to it, and I have no problem with it. There’s always going to be someone allergic to anything someone can eat. Plenty of reason for the allergic person to not eat it, plenty of reason to put the info on the ingredients list, very little reason to castigate the company for using the ingredient, or the willing consumers who eat the product.
In the latest issue of “Behind the OU Symbol” Put out by the OU, there is an article about moving away from Trans Fats because the OU is “proud to be at the forefront of assisting manufacturers to provide healthful, kosher food to all residents of planet Earth”.
In another part of the magazine, the OU has a big picture of these frostings with a quote from Manischewitz: “Now we are preparing to release ready-to-spread frosting that are not just parve, but HIGH QUALITY (my emphasis) and good tasting”.
I suppose the high quality is referring to its wonderful spreading abilities…
Thanks for the information! I figured kosher frosting was just as artery-clogging and horrible (nutritionwise, that is) as regular frosting. I use coconut milk with psyllium fiber and a bit of stevia for frosting sometimes. It works well, but isn’t a rival for “real” frosting :) I am going to try a coconut “cheese” to mimic mascarpone soon. Think it’ll work? Ah, if it doesn’t I guess you don’t have to eat it- I do, hehe.
And THANK YOU for getting up on your high horse! I love it when people care about their health. I’ll second your request for healthier kosher options.
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