Kristina DeRolf

Founder & CEO, The Outward Olive

Kristina DeRolf is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), a homeschooling mom, and the founder of The Outward Olive. She runs the business with her husband, Jim, and their daughters from the tasting room on North Main Street in Crown Point, Indiana.

How it started

In 2020, one of our daughters said she wanted to work with her family. That wish became a farmers market table, and in October 2022 it became a tasting room of our own. Today we ship our olive oils and balsamics across the country, and our daughters still help run the tasting bar.

A clinician at the table

Kristina has practiced as a CRNA since 2012. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Purdue University and her master’s degree in nurse anesthesia from Rush University.

That training shapes how she writes about olive oil: plain explanations, real numbers when they matter, and no claims she can’t stand behind. When she writes about polyphenols or what makes an olive oil high phenolic, she writes it the way she would explain it to a patient.

Where our olive oils come from

Kristina selects every olive oil and balsamic we carry. Our extra virgin olive oils come from small family farms in Greece and Tunisia, our balsamics come from Italy and Greece, and every bottle is filled by hand in our Crown Point tasting room.

What Kristina writes about

Olive oil and wellness: What “High Phenolic” Actually Means · The Science Behind Olea Reserve · Can You Cook With Extra Virgin Olive Oil?

Building a family business: The Inconvenience Is the Gift · Why We Started a Book Club at the Table

Signature recipes: Browse all of Kristina’s recipes

Read the full Outward Olive story