Paleo Chocolate Chip Muffins – Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil Review

I love coconut oil.  Like really love it.  I eat it every day, I cook with it, I bake with it… I’m just not the same person with my coconut oil.  That’s why I was so excited when Tropical Traditions sent me a jar of their Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil to review!
I am a choosy person when it comes to staples like coconut oil, so bear in mind that the following is an honest review, based completely off my own experience and opinion.

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review in return for the free product.  

Ok! Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about coconut oil!!

There are basically three ways that I use coconut oil:

1. I eat it with a spoon.  Seriously.
2. I saute with it.
3. I bake with it.

I had to test the coconut oil in all three of these areas in order to really get a feel for the product.

Eating with a spoon:

I am not kidding when I say that I do this.  Coconut oil is a great source of energy, it’s great for skin and hair, and it’s great for the gut.  So when I need just a little something to get me until supper, a scoop of coconut oil does the trick.  I realize that not everyone is that weird, but I’m going to be real and say that I eat coconut oil straight from the jar.

The Tropical Traditions coconut oil was really delicious.  It has a yummy coconutty flavor, with darker undertones.  It’s smooth, but still obviously an unrefined, rich, real food product.  Not for the faint of heart, but I found it to be quite delicious.

Sauteeing:

I prefer to cook my veggies in coconut oil because it’s just light sauteeing, which the coconut oil can stand up to very well.  Unrefined coconut oil has a smoke point of about 350 degrees Fahrenheit, so it’s perfect for everyday cooking.

One of my favorite ways to saute with coconut oil is to use it to cook shredded cabbage with some sea salt.  Basically I just heat the pan, add a scoop of coconut oil, and add the cabbage and saute until it looks delicious.  Then I eat it with a sprinkle of sea salt.  The Tropical Traditions coconut oil worked really well for this.  It didn’t smoke or burn, and the cabbage cooked beautifully.  The resulting veggie dish was quite delicious.

Baking:

This was the real test.  I love to make paleo treats for my blog (I can just hear the food police judging me ), so I need an oil for baking that produces moist baked goods.  I decided to create a whole new recipe to test this coconut oil.  The chocolate chip muffins turned out moist, sweet, and simply amazing.  The Tropical Traditions coconut oil did make the muffins a little bit coconutty, so bear that fact in mind if you’re not a coconut addict like me.

Bottom Line:

The Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil is a delicious oil.  It’s full of coconutty flavor with darker undertones, so it’s probably not best for people who don’t like coconut or are unaccustomed to its flavor.  All it all though, this is a great product.

And because I know that you’re all drooling over those chocolate chip muffins, here’s the recipe.  You’re welcome.

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