It’s Citrus Season! It’s almost impossible to drive down any house-lined street in the Conejo valley and not see an orange or lemon tree. In fact, now that April is here, I love driving through the orchards of Somis with the windows rolled down, enjoying the wafting scent of the beautiful orange blossoms. To celebrate this season and the beautiful fruit that accompany it, I’m sharing an easy-to-make olive cake recipe. What I really love about olive cake is that it doesn’t get stale sitting on the counter Instead, it tastes better (If it lasts that long!)! Crazy, right? Whether you adorn your cake with fresh berries and whipped cream, a buttercream frosting or enjoyed plain, with a simple cup of coffee, I wish you happy baking!
Olive Oil Cake
Makes one 9-inch cake INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups(240g) flour
- 1 ¾ cups(350g) sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 3 eggs, room temperature (room temperature is key!)
- 1 ¼ cups(250g) extra virgin olive oil (California oil, of course!)
- 1 ¼ cups(250g) milk, room temperature
- 1-2 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup(110g) FRESH orange juice
METHOD
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Using parchment paper and a 9-inch round cake pan, cut the paper to fit inside the pan. Spray a light coat of nonstick spray on the parchment.
- Gather your dry ingredients: baking soda & powder, flour, sugar and salt and place in a medium-size bowl. Using a whisk, lightly whisk the ingredients together for an “easy sift”.
- Using a standing or hand mixer, beat the eggs until they become a pale-yellow color, about 2-3 minutes.
- With the mixer at medium speed, slowly add the olive oil, as slow as you can, stopping once or twice the scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Mix until incorporated, about 2-3 minutes. The color should go from pale-yellow to a soft white.
- Lower the speed and add the room temperature milk , then orange zest and juice until just combined.
- With the mixer on its lowest setting, slowly add the flour, ½ cup at a time. After ¾ of the flour has been mixed, stop, and scrape down the sides again. Continue to add the flour and once it’s all just combined, scrape down the side one last time.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Lightly tap the pan on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
- Bake the cake until it starts to “dome”, about 30 minutes.
- Rotate the pan 180 degrees and finish baking for another 30 minutes. Good ways to know when the cake is finished is when it is pulling away from the side of the pan, slightly splits on top or, when a toothpick comes out cleanly.
- Remove the pan from the oven and let cool completely for cutting into it.
Serving Suggestions:
- Whipped cream and fresh berries are wonderful with this.
- Orange zest infused buttercream frosting!
- Berries macerated in sugar and orange zest and a touch of fresh orange juice are great too.
- Nasturtium flowers from your garden are edible and delicious with this, adding a bright colors to this dessert, especially with fresh berries.
- Any combination of the above simply ROCKS!
- Black, dark roast coffee.
- For an afternoon snack, try this cake with a German Riesling or dry, oak-aged California Chardonnay.
