The Only Olive Oil Cookbook: Nature's Golden Oil: Sweet and Savory Recipes - Paperback

by Christina Tosch (Author)

If you were to choose only one sort of oil to stock in your home, you couldn't go far wrong making olive oil your cupboard staple.

As the Only Olive Oil Cookbook will show you, olive oil is a great ingredient for lots of recipes; sweet and savory. Furthermore, it's beneficial for your body and brain. It's true to say, olive oil is nature's gold.

Olive oil can enhance the flavor of sweet and savory foods. Regardless of the cooking method, it conducts higher temperatures meaning that your food will cook a lot more quickly.

There is a wide range of olive oils on the market today, and each one differs in flavor due to the refining process it undergoes before it is bottled for sale.

Good quality olive oils can be recognized by their color, and this will depend on the variety of olives used and the region in which they are cultivated.

It can taste nutty, peppery, tropical, grassy, fruity, bitter, and green, and while some olive oils are bold and intense, others will be mild. You can also buy a number of flavor-infused oils too.

There are lots of different grades of olive oil, as well as varieties. Extra-virgin olive oil is perfect for cooking, for salad dressings, sauces, bean dishes, pasta, veggies, and grilled fish; it can add body, richness, and flavor.

Extra-virgin olive oil carries a lot of flavors compared to others and comes at a much higher cost, so here is a guide to cooking and baking with olive oil.

Baking: Banish the butter and instead opt for a buttery olive oil

Dressings: Chose fruity robust tasting olive oil regardless of whether you are drizzling it over soups and salads or using it as the basis of a salad dressing

Frying: When deep frying go for a filtered olive oil that is less expensive

Poaching: A mild tasting, less inexpensive oil is ideal for poaching fish

Searing: Take care not to burn or overheat the olive oil and choose a fruity variety with medium-body

Olive oil is the foundation of the Mediterranean diet. It's rich in healthy fats and high in antioxidants. What's more, studies show that it helps to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer.

From salads to sauces, pasta and roasts to cakes and cookies, the Only Olive Oil Cookbook will introduce you to an amazing ingredient along with its myriad of culinary uses.