Swap Butter for Olive Oil

Swap Butter for Olive Oil! It's one of the simplest and healthiest things you can do! That is, of course, if you choose fabulous Serriana olive oil from the Mediterranean mountains of Spain.

It's time to rethink or change old habits. Lots of people follow a vegan or alcohol free diet in January. It's a great time for trying new things.

However, you don't have to wait until January or lent or some other reason- you can start whenever you are ready.

The challenge with any new goals is that the bigger the change in our habits and behaviour, the harder they are to keep doing, as the month(s) go on.

So, instead of changing everything - how about just changing one thing? How about, swapping butter for Olive Oil - in your cooking and food?

If you swap to buttery, peppery, rich tasting Serriana olive oil, you won't miss the butter at all. While, in fact, you might fall in love with delicious Mediterranean cooking.

Still, you might want to check there 10 great reasons to do it

1. Health: Serriana Olive Oil is a healthier choice than butter. It is lower in saturated fat and contains beneficial monounsaturated fats, which have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. In contrast, butter is high in saturated fat, which can raise cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease.

2.Animal welfare: Olive oil is a plant-based product, while butter is made from the milk of cows. If you are concerned about animal welfare, using olive oil instead of butter may be a more ethical choice.

3. Environmental impact: The production of Serriana Olive Oil has a beneficial environmental impact than the production of butter. This is because our olive trees capture carbon whereas butter requires cows that pollute our environment with methane etc.

4. Versatility: Olive oil can be used for a wide variety of cooking methods, including sautéing, roasting, grilling, and baking. It can also be used as a condiment, drizzled over salads or mixed into dips. In contrast, butter is generally used for spreads and baking.

 
5. Flavour: Serriana Olive Oil has a distinctive, smoky flavour that adds depth and complexity to dishes. It pairs well with many ingredients, including vegetables, grains, and legumes. Butter, on the other hand, has a more neutral flavour and is often used to add richness and moisture to baked goods.

6. Shelf life: Olive oil has a longer shelf life than butter. And you don't need to run a fridge to keep olive oil cool. Olive oil can can be stored for long periods of time without spoiling. This helps if you don't use butter often or if you want to keep a supply on hand for cooking and baking.

 
7. Nutritional value: Olive oil is a good source of vitamin E, a potent antioxidant that helps to protect cells from damage. It also contains a variety of other beneficial compounds, including polyphenols and flavonoids. Butter, on the other hand, is not a significant source of these nutrients.

8. Heart health: Some research indicates that olive oil may help to lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack. In addition, Olive Oil is shown to lower levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol and increase levels of HDL (good) cholesterol.

9. Cancer prevention: Some studies have found that olive oil has anti-cancer properties, particularly when it comes to breast and colon cancer. The antioxidants in olive oil may help to protect cells from damage and reduce the risk of cancer.

10. Weight management: Olive oil is lower in calories than butter. This is helpful if you are trying to maintain a healthy weight. It is also more filling, which may help you to eat less overall.

Yep, there are lots of great reasons to swap butter for Serriana Olive Oil in your cooking and eating habits. From a health perspective, olive oil is a much better choice than butter.

And olive oil has a number of other benefits such as positive environmental impact and the potential to support animal welfare.

And it's easy too. Check out these butter alternative olive oil recipes here.

A major piece of research on swapping olive oil for butter was published by Harvard in January 2022. It was based on just over 92,000 individuals over a 28 year follow up programme. So, its a huge study!

The key conclusion was that swapping butter or other animal fats for olive oil is a great health choice. Here's the key paragraph:

Higher olive oil intake was associated with 19% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality (HR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.75-0.87), 17% lower risk of cancer mortality (HR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.78-0.89), 29% lower risk of neurodegenerative disease mortality (HR: 0.71; 95% CI: 0.64-0.78), and 18% lower risk of respiratory disease mortality (HR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.72-0.93). In substitution analyses, replacing 10 g/d of margarine, butter, mayonnaise, and dairy fat with the equivalent amount of olive oil was associated with 8%-34% lower risk of total and cause-specific mortality.

Or, to put it more simply

“Clinicians should be counselling patients to replace certain fats, such as margarine and butter, with olive oil to improve their health,”

When it comes to replacing butter with olive oil - there is just one things to know.

Firstly, you need less olive oil - per gram, per ounce etc - than you do with butter. The ratio is typically 2/3rds. That means, for a recipe that required, say, 15 grams of butter you would add 10 grams of olive oil.

Or, if your recipe asked for 6 ounces of butter, you would add 4 ounces of olive oil.

That's it. If you use olive oil on your bread or toast, obviously, use as much as you like. It' s only when you are following a recipe that you need to use the 2/3rd olive oil for butter ratio.