Advice please on using oil in baking.

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Mad Cook

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As you may know, we don't often use oil in baking in the UK. Most recipes calling for it are of American origin. My question is - what type of oil do you use. I've seen a recipe recently which uses olive oil and I would have thought it would be too dominant a flavour. The most easily obtainable oils available here are olive, sunflower seed, rape seed oil (both the cheap stuff and the cold pressed). We also get sesame seed oil and grapeseed.

I haven't been very successful baking with oil, to date, so would appreciate any advice you have to give. (My baked cake is usually damp and not very nice tasting)
 
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When making baked goods, you should go with a neutral tasting oil. It's there to provide fat and moisture, not flavor.
 
I buy and use for all of my baking and cooking needs plain vegetable oil. I have a small bottle of Greek olive oil on hand for recipes that call for it. I prefer Greek olive oil over Italian because it is less bitter than the Italian. Plain vegetable oil has no flavor at all. :angel:
 
I'm no expert on baking, but I've used applesauce in place of oil in some recipes, and it has worked out very well.
 
For what it's worth MC I only use rapeseed or grapeseed ( that's more expensive) oil. Veg or sunflower oil I find too 'oily' if you know what I mean and I do use olive oil when making fancy breads as in ciabatta but not for cakes. Carrot cake for instance is fine with rapeseed and I have on occasion used half butter ( unsalted and melted) with rapeseed to good effect. Grapeseed I buy for special occasions and also then use it as the oil base for one of the most light salad dressings you can ask for. Hope this helps
 
I also recommend rape seed oil or grape seed oil they should work well.

On the applesauce thing, this really only works well in limited applications. Things like carrot cake or quick breads, you can get away with it better than with something like a sponge cake. Without the oil the baked goods will be less tender and the flavor will be different, for me the fat helps the flavor.

depending on the recipe, melted butter could also be used.

One advantage to using oil in a cake is that the cake doesn't get firm when chilled, it stays soft unlike a butter cake.
 
I also recommend rape seed oil or grape seed oil they should work well.

On the applesauce thing, this really only works well in limited applications. Things like carrot cake or quick breads, you can get away with it better than with something like a sponge cake. Without the oil the baked goods will be less tender and the flavor will be different, for me the fat helps the flavor.

depending on the recipe, melted butter could also be used.

One advantage to using oil in a cake is that the cake doesn't get firm when chilled, it stays soft unlike a butter cake.
My recipe for sponge cake doesn't have any fat, except from the egg yolks. It's from Joy of Cooking.
 
Thank you, everyone. That's very helpful. I'm having a baking day tomorrow so I'll try it out both the oil and apple sauce in a couple of recipes.
 
My recipe for sponge cake doesn't have any fat, except from the egg yolks. It's from Joy of Cooking.

A proper sponge can certainly be made without fat, but if you were to try a creaming method with applesauce instead of oil, the results would be pretty bad. Thing is, not many people, at least in the states make a proper sponge. You would notice that if you added fat it would become more tender and more moist.

One of my favorite cake recipes is a hot milk sponge, but with a melted stick of butter added with the hot milk. The cake has a beautiful, fine, spongy texture but is very tender.
 
If a recipe were to specifically call for olive oil, I would assume there's a reason, probably the flavor. I don't think I would take it on myself to start substituting olive oil in dessert recipes. I generally use what the recipe instructs unless I'm in an invention mood. I have a sensitivity to soy and peanut oil so usually stick with Canola oil. Sometimes "vegetable" oil mean soy oil. When using olive oil, I agree with Addie about the flavor of Greek olive oil.
 
A proper sponge can certainly be made without fat, but if you were to try a creaming method with applesauce instead of oil, the results would be pretty bad. Thing is, not many people, at least in the states make a proper sponge. You would notice that if you added fat it would become more tender and more moist.

One of my favorite cake recipes is a hot milk sponge, but with a melted stick of butter added with the hot milk. The cake has a beautiful, fine, spongy texture but is very tender.
Never heard of a hot milk sponge. Will go and look it up when I've done here.

I have to say that I avoid whisked/fatless sponges like the plague. I've neber had a disaster but always expect to do so:rolleyes:
 
If a recipe were to specifically call for olive oil, I would assume there's a reason, probably the flavor. I don't think I would take it on myself to start substituting olive oil in dessert recipes. I generally use what the recipe instructs unless I'm in an invention mood. I have a sensitivity to soy and peanut oil so usually stick with Canola oil. Sometimes "vegetable" oil mean soy oil. When using olive oil, I agree with Addie about the flavor of Greek olive oil.
Although I like soya beans "meaty" taste, I don't like the taste of things made with soya milk or oil and I've never used peanut oil.
 
There are many types of olive oil available , I use a mild and light one for a Nigella cake I am very fond of . You cannot taste the oil and the cake is moist and chocolatey . I have also used vegetable oil in a Pru Leith carrot cake which is superb .
 

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There are many types of olive oil available , I use a mild and light one for a Nigella cake I am very fond of . You cannot taste the oil and the cake is moist and chocolatey . I have also used vegetable oil in a Pru Leith carrot cake which is superb .
Thanks, GQ. I have several of Nigella's books so I'll look the recipe out.
 
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