Butter and olive oil can be used interchangeably for baking cakes depending on the end product you want. If you want your cake tender with a richer flavor, butter can give you that. On the other hand, if you're aiming for a healthier, deliciously succulent cake, you'll be better off with an olive oil cake.
So what do you look to achieve?
Specific flavor
When it comes to cake, flavor is critical. By establishing the flavor you want, you can decide on the recipe's ingredients. Both olive oil and butter contribute to the flavor profiles of cakes.
Olive oil has a particularly distinctive flavor that could overwhelm other ingredients. If olive flavor isn't exactly what you want for your cake, you should ditch it for other neutral-flavored alternatives. Better still, you can introduce different flavors like lemon and have a lemon olive oil cake.
A Moist, not a dry cake
A dry cake is every baker's worst nightmare. Everyone loves a moist cake that readily melts away in the mouth without chewing. If you have to chew your cake, you probably should have bought biscuits. Substituting butter for extra virgin olive oil is a clever hack for baking moist cakes that stay succulent longer.
A Healthy cake
Bakers aim for different things in a cake. For some ( maybe should be every baker), health comes first. This means that any ingredient in the recipe that makes the cake less healthy is substituted with a healthy alternative. There's evidence that olive oil baking is more nutritious than baking with butter in several aspects.
Need to bake a healthier cake? Substitute olive oil for butter.
While some may argue that all fats are borderline unhealthy, there's evidence of healthier options in the market, one of which is olive oil. Research has it that olive oil is more beneficial than butter and other plant-based cooking oil. So what are the health benefits of olive oil?
Rich in Monounsaturated fats
Olive oil is 14% saturated fat, 11% polyunsaturated fat, and 73% monounsaturated fat. Oleic acid, the predominant monounsaturated fatty acid, is resistant to heat and linked to several health benefits, including reducing inflammations and inhibiting the growth and spread of cancer cells.
Olive oil is rich in antioxidants.
Extra virgin olive oil is loaded with antioxidants associated with several biological benefits. More obviously, antioxidants prevent oxidation –a toxic chemical reaction involving your blood cholesterol that can kill cells in your body. Antioxidants prevent inflammation and lower the risk of getting heart diseases.
Beneficial anti-inflammatory properties
Olive oil is loaded with nutrients that prevent tissue inflammation. Inflammations can cause cancer and a host of other chronic diseases like heart problems, diabetes, arthritis, and obesity.
Olive oil prevents stroke.
A stroke occurs when the blood pressure in the arteries carrying blood to the brain is too high to rupture the vessel. Several studies have demonstrated that olive oil is the single source of monounsaturated fat that can reduce the risk of stroke and other fatal heart diseases.
Other reasons you should consider extra virgin olive oil for baking include its antibacterial properties, lower risk of cancer, and prevention of Alzheimer's disease, among other health benefits.