Proof That The Coconut Oil Craze Has Gotten Out Of Hand

Coconut oil is everywhere these days. This fragrant cooking oil has seen one of the fastest turnarounds ever, flip-flopping from vilified fat just a few years ago to the jack of all trades of the health world today. You can use it as a vegan substitute for butter, pour it in your smoothies or even use it as a moisturizer for your skin or hair. Once shunned for its high levels of saturated fat, coconut oil is now the indisputable darling of the health food world.

We're all in favor for using a little coconut oil in your recipes. It tastes great on certain roasted vegetables, like sweet potatoes, and tastes great in baked goods where a hint of coconut is complementary. It's not always welcome, however.

Like the kale and quinoa trends before it, the coconut oil trend is getting a little out of hand. It's great for certain recipes and food products, but it doesn't belong everywhere. A little goes a long way, and too often the coconut flavor is overpowering. We don't want it on our kale chips, and we don't want it with our Brussels sprouts. It's cool in most desserts, but only ones where you want a coconut flavor. In other words, please keep it out of our chocolate chip cookies.

As people go crazy adding coconut oil into their recipes, food companies are catching on too. Coconut oil has become a badge of honor for health food products, and frankly, it's not always appropriate. Here are seven times coconut oil invaded our senses.