Butter, or coconut oil (depending on the particular recipe) would be the healthiest choices. Butter, though, NOT margarine. It's for good reason that chemists called margarine "edible plastic". I haven't had any shortening or margarine in my kitchen for more than 25 years and haven't missed it. You do not need to add anything else - just measure out the amount of butter called for in the recipe. You will not be disappointed. I make chocolate chip cookies all the time with butter, as well as pie crust. No problem. Cooks everywhere used butter long before shortening was invented. Somebody just had some effluent they found a way to make a profit on, instead of throwing it away... much like the fluoride they put in our water.
By the way, I have never had a problem with crispness. I like crisp cookies, not soft ones, and believe me, if they weren't crisp with butter, I'd never bake them again. I've never had to alter the amount of flour or anything else... just substitute the butter for shortening. I'm thinking a lot of the flap may be because of what we've been taught by the shortening-making industry.
Last edited by Alondra; 01-03-2014 at 05:59 PM.