Butter vs. Margarine

I love to cook and to bake. I'll be the first to admit, I'm not Masterchef quality, but I do love to imagine I am. One of my new favorite websites and cookbooks is Our Best Bites. It was introduced to me several months ago by one of my awesome co-workers! On the OBB website and cookbook they always tell you to use real butter - no substitutions! My co-worker and I discussed this so we tested it with OBB's delicious SUGAR COOKIES. She used margarine, I used butter. While both cookies were delicious, the butter one, obviously, had a more buttery taste and we thought that it was the better of the two. I told my BFF Jessie about this test and she said that the best way to do this test is to have the same cook make it both times with the different butters - because of the difference in cooking styles, measurements, ovens, etc...so to TRULY tell the difference - I did it. Here are my findings in baking with butter vs margarine:

• Difference number one - right off the get go there was a difference when mixing the butter or margarine with the sugar. It is supposed to be well blended and fluffy, as they say. Butter = beautiful, margarine = ....huh? It looked kind of gross - it was mixed with the sugar, but with a separated look. I wish I had a picture to show. FYI - I used Blue Bonnet margarine - so it may be better with a different brand, but not this one.
• Difference number two didn't come until after I baked them. Oddly enough, the margarine cookies were slightly more yellow. Only slightly, but they were more of a yellowish color.
• Difference number three was that the margarine cookies were more crumbly. This wasn't too surprising to me because of the separation in the beginning.
• Difference number four is probably mostly biased - I thought the butter ones were better. I should have had a cookie connoisseur taste them to make the decision, but my first batch of butter cookies was cooked too long (emergency with the 3 year old takes precedence to over baked cookies) and by the time I got the next batch of good butter cookies out, it was almost 11 at night. All the cookie connoisseur's that I know aren't up that late on a school night. Not sure why I was. Don't get me wrong, the margarine ones were still super delicious and soft and good, but the butter ones just had a better taste and stayed together better....at least to me.
• Difference number five and the last difference is the obvious one. The butter cookies have more calories...and saturated fat. But let's be honest - when you're eating cookies, are you really counting calories? Okay, well maybe you are.

My conclusion - both were very delicious and if you only have margarine in your house then you are still going to make great cookies, but I do agree with Kate and Sara from Our Best Bites - butter IS better for baking - no substitutions. But that's my opinion....and the opinion of the best bakers in the world...just sayin'.