Moms are talking about - Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has come up in conversation with moms a few times over the last week so we thought we'd take a look and learn more!

What we learned
Web searches will tell you that coconut oil is a cure-all, good for everything must have, but we don't easily subscribe to dietary hype and recommend asking your doctor, naturopath or favourite health food store for more information.

In a "nutshell"..haha..coconut oil contains medium-chain fatty acids, which can be metabolized faster than the long chain kind found most commonly in our diets.  Its still a saturated fat, so don't go crazy, but perhaps it might be a good pantry staple to change up your oils and introduce some new flavour.

Health properties aside, moms love it, so we thought we'd share a few ways to give it a try:

Topical applications

• Use it on your skin as a lotion to moisturize
• Use it as an eye make-up remover
• Use it to help prevent stretch marks
• Sooth nursing nipples
• Rub it on baby's bum
• Use it to help with cradle cap - rub on baby's head, leave for a couple of min and wash off with a warm cloth

Recipes

- You can use it in any recipe as a replacement to vegetable oils or butter - 1to1 substitution ratio.  You can also use it as an simply additive where you want a bit of extra flavour.  Play around.

- Great for baking - think chocolate chip cookies :)  One of our moms also just tried it in her granola bar recipe and loved it.

- Popcorn - to make your plain popcorn "pop" we've heard you can either pop it in coconut oil (2tbsp oil to 1/3 cup popcorn kernels), or drizzle a bit on top for some flavour.

- Smoothies!  Moms are raving about coconut oil in smoothies - here are some Pinterest faves

- Salad Dressing - add something new to your salad dressing by using a bit of coconut oil

- Stir Fries & Other meals - think recipes and ingredients where you might use coconut milk

Do you use coconut oil?  Tell us about it!