Fat

A small amount of fat is often added to nougat to shorten its texture, making the candy less chewy. Fat is almost never added to marshmallow and seldom to divinity. An ideal fat should set hard at room temperature, melt below body temperature, melt rapidly, and have a mild, pleasant flavor. In other words, the ideal fat to add to nougat is cocoa butter. However, because the high cost of cocoa butter, some confectioners use fractionated coconut fat or hydrogenated fats instead. These are acceptable substitutes in some regard, but they take a distant second place to cocoa butter because they melt at higher temperatures, contain trans fats, and lack flavor. Fat should be added to an aerated confection after whipping is complete, as fat destabilizes foam, and excessive handling after the fat has been added deflates the nougat, resulting in a dense texture.