Olive oil is awesome substituted in recipes, and is also great tossed with steamed veggies. We also love the Good Seasons Italian Salad Dressing mixes. They are easy, and in the box there are recipes for a bunch of other fun, healthy salad dressings with olive oil.
Here are a couple facts about olive oil:
Olive oil is high in monounsaturated fatty acid (the "good" fatty acid that helps lower your LDL cholesterol and raise your HDL cholesterol). It contains oleic acid, omega-3 fatty acid (alpha-linolenic acid), omega-6 fatty acid (linoleic acid), antioxidants and vitamin E.
Because of it's good effect on cholesterol, olive oil has been found to decrease the chance of heart disease. Studies found that it was best to substitute olive oil for unhealthy oils in you diet, and not just add excess olive oil. The oleic acid found in olive oil is also believed to prevent cancer.
There are many different qualities of olive oil. In order from high quality to low quality: extra virgin, fine virgin (or just virgin), pure olive oil, and light olive oil. The higher quality olive oils are higher in vitamin E and antioxidants, but also have a strong olive oil taste. The lower quality olive oils have a more neutral taste. I use the pure olive oil or light olive oil most of the time, just because the taste of it doesn't over power the taste of my recipes.
Olive oil has no trans fat, however, if you cook it above it's smoke point (approx 340 degrees F) then the structure of the olive oil can become hydrogenated and produce some trans fat. So the less cooking the better when using olive oil.
And my last pointer on olive oil, it is TONS cheaper at Costco! So...let the substituting begin!
(Info and picture from: http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/food-nutrition/facts/olive-oil-nutrition-facts.htm)
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