Shortening
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Shortening is any fat that is a solid at room temperature and is used to make crumbly pastry and other food products.
Strutto, clarified pork fat, or lard, a type of shortening common in Italy and Corsica (where it is named sdruttu)
A 1918 advertisement for shortening
A short dough is crumbly; it will crack or crumble if stretched too far.
A long dough can be stretched easily.
Margarine
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Margarine is a spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from v
Shortening
…should not be elastic, shortening is used to produce the desired texture. Originally shortening was synonymous with lard, but with the invention of margarine from beef tallow by French chemist Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès in 1869, margarine also came to be included in the term. Since the invention of hydrogenated…
Margarine in a tub
Dutch margarine advertising, 1893
A 1948 advertisement for margarine with instructions for mixing the color inside a sealed bag.
Postcard of "Incorporating Salt and Working Moisture out of "Swift's Premium" Oleomargarine", undated