It’s somewhat of a commonplace (or maybe a legacy from when, for various cultural or geographic reasons, there were no alternatives): but we often tend to think (or hear) that the more butter a cake contains, the better it is. A generous portion of butter is usually a surefire way to get compliments for your dessert. But some people are intolerant, vegan, or just on a diet. When one or more of these three reasons are combined, we can discover, to our joy, that oil can also be used for desserts. And in some cases it’s even more suitable than butter.
Why replace butter with oil?
In addition to personal food preferences, such as a vegan diet, and intolerances, there are three main reasons for replacing butter with oil: taste, composition and texture. The oil in the kitchen, especially for those accustomed to the flavors of the Mediterranean diet, has the taste of simplicity and, compared to butter, gives the cakes the fluffiness of breakfast donuts as children. It’s perfect for all sweets – or cakes – in addition to filling the room with scents, memories and magic.
Weights and measures
The different degrees of softness come from a different composition of the two fats. In fact, when replacing butter with oil in a recipe, the weights of the two cannot be considered equivalent: 3 ½ oz of butter correspond, for example, to 7 tsp of olive oil. It’s obviously possible, and sometimes better for the final result, to replace butter with more delicate seed oils or with oils extracted from dried fruit, such as almond oil, which is more flavored. Similar considerations must be made for the composition and consistency: one – butter – is solid; the other – oil – is liquid. They should be treated differently in the preparations and managed with a pinch of pastry wisdom, to be refined with practice.
Oil temperature
When oil is added to sweets, it’s always best to incorporate it cold, so as to create a thicker emulsion. In some cases, however, it’s advisable to emulsify the oil directly with another liquid, usually water, using a food processor first. Add the emulsion to the dry mix only at the end.
The type of oil
You can use any type of oil you like. And remember, even though extra-virgin olive oil is the best, it tends not to be as neutral as that of seeds. For this reason we recommend you to try other types, such as almond oil. It might be a bit expensive, but it’s among the best.