These are the BEST Olive Oil Drop Biscuits! Easy to make and light and fluffy in texture. They are the perfect side to any meal.
Truth: I have never swapped olive oil in a recipe that seemingly would requires butter. Biscuits use cold butter to get a flaky texture. This raises the question… Can you replace butter for olive oil in a biscuit?
The answer is YES. And it is SO GOOD.
Recipe Features:
- Dairy Free: This recipe can be made dairy free by substituting your favorite nut milk.
- Quick and Easy: From start to finish you are looking at less than 20 minutes.
- Perfect Beginner simple olive oil drop biscuit: This recipe is no-fail and perfect for beginners.
What You’ll Need:
- Flour: I have only made this with All-purpose flour. However, readers have had success with gluten free options!
- Baking Powder: Be sure to use fresh baking powder to get that beautiful fluffy texture.
- Sugar: I limited the sugar in this recipe. Feel free to add more for a sweeter biscuit.
- Salt: A flavor enhancer. Do not skip.
- Olive Oil: Pick a light flavored olive oil and be sure it has not turned sour. Olive oil should be replaced if not used regularly.
- Milk: I like this easy drop biscuit recipe with whole milk, cream, or non-dairy substitutes.
Step by Step Instruction:
- Preheat the oven to 420 degrees. Grease a baking tray and set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a medium sized bowl.
- Stir in the oil and milk until fully combined.
- Drop by the tablespoon full (I do a heaping spoon) onto a baking sheet.
- Bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.
Tips and FAQ’s:
Can you use oil instead of butter in biscuits?
The short answer? Yes. You can definitely substitute oil for butter. The secret is to use an extra light olive oil. It is made for baking, and with the addition of some extra salt, you get the same great flavor. No one will even know you’ve made the swap!
Keep this recipe handy. It is a favorite in our household and frequently requested at family events.
What do olive oil drop biscuits taste like?
This is the most common question I’m asked. What do these taste like?
They taste just like the biscuits you would regularly make. Light, fluffy, and delicious drizzled with a little honey or jam. I strongly suggest trying one right out of the oven topped with my pomegranate jelly. To-die-for.
These are outstanding! Moist, light, fluffy, and a slight salty flavor. Perfect for any fall soups or Sunday dinners.
Related Recipes:
Like this recipe? You will love my:
- Homemade Biscuit Recipe
- 7 Up Biscuits
- Simple Flatbread
- Overnight Artisan Bread
- 3 Ingredient Sausage Gravy
- Pomegranate Jelly
Easy Olive Oil Drop Biscuits
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup Extra Light Tasting olive oil
- 1 cup of milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 420 degrees. Grease a baking tray and set aside.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a medium sized bowl.
- Stir in the oil and milk until fully combined.
- Drop by the tablespoon full (I do a heaping spoon) onto a baking sheet.
- Bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.
Notes
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Ramie Streng says
Thank you … appreciate you posting your recipe. Off to make it now!
Barton Schoenfeld says
Great easy and quick recipe for biscuits! I used only 1/2 tsp of sugar and they were delicious. I didn’t have light olive oil so I used half flavorful olive oil and half canola.
Jesseca says
Hi Barton, I’m glad you liked the recipe. Thanks for adding in some helpful tips.
Kiki says
Mine were so loose they turned out like flat cookies? I even added more flour but was afraid to go too much.
Jesseca says
Hi Kiki, When you say loose, do you mean dry? I’d love to help figure out what went wrong here.
Jolyne says
They mean wet, liquid-y
Jesseca says
You could try adding the milk a 1/4 cup at a time until the right consistency is met.
Alex says
We subbed unsweetened soy milk for milk and canola oil for olive oil and added fresh rosemary, black pepper and cheese to the dry ingredients and they came out great, but probably could have stayed in a minute or two longer to get a little golden.
Theresa says
Made GF and they were delicious. I did add a little more sugar as I was making them for breakfast. First GF biscuit that was crunchy on the outside and soft and wonderful on the inside. Thank you for this recipe!!
Jesseca says
Thank you for taking the time to review! I do love these biscuits!
Glory says
Very good. easy. Common ingredients to have on hand. In this coronavirus pandemic quarantine, I was running out of butter but have olive oil. Thanks for your recipe. Will try w seasonings and or herbs.
Jesseca says
Thank you for taking the time to review the recipe, Glory! I hope you find some great herbs or seasonings to mix in.
Eva says
Everything that goes into the biscuits are white, so why aren’t the biscuits white?
Jesseca says
Hi Eva, I’m not sure why your biscuits were not white and am a little unsure what issue you were having. They always turn out as white fluffy biscuits for me.
Mel says
If they weren’t white you did something Wrong..
T says
Can you substitute any oil ( vegetable or canola)?
Jesseca says
Great question. I have never tried to substitute a vegetable or canola oil, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. I have made these with butter and they turned out great. Let us know if you make the recipe with your changes.
Ashlee says
I’ve been using vegetable oil for my biscuits since I didn’t have olive oil, they turned out fairly good. Kinda bland and dryish though so you’ll want to make adjustments
Carrie says
These are great. Exactly what I was looking for. The only difference for me is I am baking them in my electric skillet that only goes to 400 degrees so they need 14 minutes. My son and I decided to take another commenters idea and added garlic powder parsley and cheese. They turned out amazing. Thank you for this great and versatile recipe.
Jesseca says
We loved the addition of garlic powder, parsley and cheese. They are on regular rotation here in the One Sweet Appetite home. Requested most frequently by my 10 year old! Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Carrie Lankford says
My son has now started experimenting with flavors. We now have spicy garlic biscuits. 😀
Nikki says
This recipe is also great when you add garlic powder, dried parsley and cheddar cheese and it makes amazing cheddar garlic biscuits like red lobsters. Or you can just add any herbs and make delicious herb biscuits! The possibilities are endless!!!
Jesseca says
That sounds DELICIOUS!! I need to give it a try asap. I’m sure my family would go nuts for that version.
Logan says
All they need is a little cheddar cheese and they’ll taste just like red lobster bicuits. Still good by themselves though. Thanks 🙂
Jesseca says
I love the idea of cheddar cheese added into the dough. Thanks for sharing the idea.
Greer says
These are FABULOUS!!! I wanted to make them as a base for strawberry shortcake tonight (on a COLD January night!) & couldn’t find my old olive oil biscuit recipe. These are 10,000 times better!!! And for the doubter, you’d never know you were eating olive oil!
Jesseca says
I’m glad you loved this recipe as much as we do. What a great idea to use it as a strawberry shortcake base!
carolyn guth says
These biscuits are outstanding!! I added some garlic powder to the flour and was amazed at how good they were. My go to biscuit recipe from now on!!
Jesseca says
Thank you for giving them a try! I love the idea of added garlic powder. I need to test that out ASAP!
Kerrie says
@Jesseca,
Can I skip the sugar?
Jesseca says
You might be able to. It would most likely change the flavor slightly so I’m not sure if it would work. Please let us know if you do and how it goes.
Cassidy says
Used Whole Wheat Flour and it took about 3-4 extra minutes to cook
Deborah says
Thank you – this was exactly what I was looking for. A little crunch on the outside, and light and soft on the inside. And the recipe couldn’t be easier! I put most of the biscuits on top of a chicken casserole. By the way, you can also substitute olive oil for butter in chocolate chip cookies, although the amount may not be the same – just go for consistency. They taste just as great but don’t seem to stay fresh as long (not a problem at my house). I also use olive oil in pie dough in place of vegetable shortening. (I don’t know how much; I just add until it looks right.) It’s much easier and I can’t tell the difference.