Baking with Olive Oil

Using olive oil for baking is a familiar feature of Mediterranean cooking.  While it may sound a bit odd, baking with olive oil has actually been done for centuries.  Olive oil gives cakes and cookies a light texture and can be used with confidence in lieu of butter or other oils.  It is best to use a lower intensity, late harvest extra-virgin olive oil when baking which gives a subtle flavor.  The dominant taste of high intensity olive oils may interfere with the end result taste.  The exception would be using flavored oils where the flavor would add to the taste, such as Blood Orange EVOO.

Olive oil dramatically cuts back on the cholesterol and saturated fat content of desserts.  It produces lighter-tasting baked goods and allows the flavor of the other ingredients to come forth.  Because olive oil contains Vitamin E, it helps to naturally maintain the freshmess of baked goods and creates moist cakes, biscuits and muffins.

You can also use olive oil for preparing a baking pan before adding the dough or other mixture.  Simply brush the oil onto your favorite baking pan, cookie sheet, spring-form pan or other type of baking dish or pan.

I suppose you're wondering how to determine how to subtitute one amount for another.

Here's a Conversion Chart:

Butter/Margarine                                                        Olive Oil

1 teaspoon                                                                     3/4 teaspoon

1 tablespoon                                                                  2 1/4 teaspoons

1/4 cup                                                                           3 tablespoons

1/3 cup                                                                           1/4 cup

1/2 cup                                                                           1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon

2/3 cup                                                                           1/2 cup     

3/4 cup                                                                           1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon

1 cup                                                                              3/4 cup


This Conversion Chart is more for baking recipes where quantities are critical. One thing to remember, though, is olive oil cannot be substituted in recipes where the item must stay solid at room temperature...such as cake frosting.