Grapeseed Oil Is The Secret Baking Ingredient For Purer Tasting Cookies
If you're looking for an alternative cooking oil to vegetable oil for baking cookies, look no further than grapeseed oil. As the name implies, grapeseed oil is made from the oil extracted — often through pressing — from grape seeds left over from the winemaking process. It can be used for a number of different cooking purposes, thanks in part to its high smoke point (420-445 degrees Fahrenheit). The smoke point is important because it is a measure of the point at which oil starts to burn off. When this happens, it can negatively impact the taste of whatever food you're cooking. But grapeseed oil may be especially good for baking due to such qualities as its generally mild flavor, which will give your cookies a purer taste.
Grapeseed oil is also a great emulsifier, making it ideally suited for cookie recipes. Emulsifiers are critical in baking because they help bring together two elements that typically don't mix well: oil and water. As a dough stabilizer, they enhance texture and consistency in baked goods. Taken together, these moistening and emulsifying properties can aid the distribution and durability of flavors without the oil contributing any strong taste of its own, which allows the other flavors to stand out further. Moreover, grapeseed oil holds in moisture, helping you bake a soft, chewy, and delicious cookie.
Types of grapeseed oil and health benefits
When considering the type of grapeseed oil to use for baking cookies, it helps to understand that there are perceptible differences depending on how it is produced. For instance, it can be hot-pressed or cold-pressed. Hot pressing involves a process that exposes the seeds to high temperatures and largely removes the flavor, smell, and color of the oil. Cold pressing takes place at cooler temperatures and produces grapeseed oil that has a green color and more of a fruity profile, with a bit of the grape coming through on the palate. Though it is still mild, it may impact your cookies' flavor a little more.
While we can't say it will make your cookies nutritious, grapeseed oil boasts potential health benefits. It provides a rich source of vitamin E (even more so than olive oil), an antioxidant that can lower a person's risk of cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. A study found that it may even reduce blood clotting. However, the possible health benefits of grapeseed oil haven't been widely studied and may vary based on what kind you buy. Use grapeseed oil for purer-tasting cookies. Simply substitute it for canola oil in the recipe the next time you bake a batch.