How to Bake with Olive Oil

In today’s tutorial, we show you how to bake with olive oil; whether you’re looking to make your baked good healthier, add a unique flavour or simply want to make a dairy free exchange, this tutorial is for you.

When I think of baking, one main ingredient comes to mind: B U T T E R. But every so often, and especially if I’m developing recipes that I want to be more nutrient-dense and heart-healthy, I look to luscious, golden olive oil to keep things clean and add some unexpected flavour to classic baked good recipes. Today is all about Baking with Olive Oil on Baked! 

Olive oil can be a pretty intense flavour so while it does integrate well with many sweet recipes, it’s not a one-size-fits-all addition. Flavours can range from spicy/peppery and rich, to mild and buttery, to grassy and super fruity, so choosing one can sometimes be tricky if you haven’t done a little research. Luckily, we’re sharing the coles notes for flavour pairings, conversions and inspired recipes so you won’t have to look far when you’re ready to get baking.

Later this week on BAKED we’ll be sharing a review of kitchen godess and author Nigella Lawson’s most recent book, At My Table, which shares stories and recipes that celebrate home cooking, my favourite kind, along with a recipe for Nigella’s pillowy soft Chocolate Olive Oil Mousse.

My very basic rules for baking with olive oil are as follows.

1. When baking goods with mild, easily hidden flavours, like a citrus cake or almond cookies, pair with an olive oil that is also mild and has a gentle flavour. This will give your cookies, cakes and muffins a notable fruity flavour throughout without punching you in the face or overtaking the recipe.

2. When baking with chocolate, especially dark, feel free to experiment with spicier, peppery olive oils as their flavour resonates well without overpowering (also worth noting; the combination of dark chocolate and olive oil has been associated with improved cardiovascular health.. so get into those olive oil and chocolate cakes and brownies, stat!)

3. TASTE YOUR OIL. This sounds like a no-brainer but you’d be surprised how many people pour before tasting and think the recipe has failed when really, they just don’t like the flavour of oil they’ve purchased. If you wouldn’t want to drag a piece of fresh bread through it, you probably don’t want it in your baked goods.

4. Use fresh oil. Olive oil can go rancid over time and the flavour will change. Because the flavour of your olive oil will be present in the final product, you want your oil to be as fresh as possible.

5. Swapping olive oil for butter works best when the recipe calls for melted fat. If a recipe calls for creaming butter and sugar together, it’s probably best to stick to the butter (unless you’re in an experimental mood).

Baking With Olive Oil Inspiration

If you’re in need of some inspiration for using olive oil in your next baking project, we’ve gathered up our favourite recipes from some mega inspirational blogs around the web. Happy experimenting and join us here on Thursday when we share the recipe for Nigella Lawson’s Chocolate Olive Oil Mousse!

1. Olive Oil Pistachio Brownies from Love & Olive Oil

2. Lemon Olive Oil Cookies from A Calculated Whisk

3. Lemon Rosemary and Olive Oil Shortbread from Cookie + Kate

6. Greek Yoghurt and Olive Oil Cake with Orange Blossom Glaze from BAKED