This Orange Olive Oil Cake is so tender, so light, and so moist with a lovely hint of orange and a rustic, crackly topping. It’s sure to become a family favorite!
Does it taste like olive oil?
If you’ve never tried olive oil in cake, don’t let the name fool you. It doesn’t taste like olive oil! But something magical happens to the flavor and the texture. The fruity, complex flavor of a good quality extra virgin olive oil complements the orange flavor and lets it shine through. The tender crumb is so light and so moist. It’s even moister the day after you bake it which is great for making it in advance.
A crispy, crackly topping
Sugar is sprinkled on top of this Orange Olive Oil Cake before baking to create a crispy, crackly topping. The top will puff up and crack during baking creating a rustic crust that contrasts beautifully with the moist tender crumb.
Perfect for breakfast or snacking
This Orange Olive Oil Cake is perfect for breakfast or snacking. It’s so simple and not overly sweet. Enjoy it with a cup of coffee or pack a piece in with lunch. It’s totally fuss free – perfect for a bake sale, to take along on a picnic, or to give as a gift.
How to make Orange Olive Oil Cake
The key to the moist, light crumb of this Orange Olive Oil Cake is whisking air into the eggs. The eggs are whipped with a whisk attachment in a stand mixer for a minute. Sugar and orange zest are added and then whipped on high speed for another three minutes.
With the machine running, olive oil is slowly poured in and whipped another minute. The dry ingredients and orange juice are mixed in alternately until combined.
The batter is poured into a 9-inch (or 10-inch) springform pan and sugar is sprinkled on top. As it bakes, the cake will puff up, cracking the crust, and leaving a crispy, crackly topping.
This recipe is adapted from Cook’s Illustrated’s Olive Oil Cake. I swapped orange juice for the milk and 1 tablespoon orange zest for 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest.
Orange Olive Oil Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (8.75oz, 248g)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ¼ cups sugar (8.75oz, 248g)
- Finely grated orange zest from 2 oranges (1 tablespoon, 6g)
- ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil (5.25oz, 149g)
- ¾ cup orange juice (6.9oz, 197g)
For topping:
- 2 tablespoons sugar (.9oz, 25g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick baking spray.
- Put flour, baking powder, and salt in bowl and whisk to combine.
- Using stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip eggs on medium speed until foamy, about 1 minute.
- Add sugar and orange zest. Whip on high speed until mixture is fluffy and pale yellow, about 3 minutes.
- Reduce speed to medium. With mixer running, slowly pour in oil and mix until oil is fully incorporated, about 1 minute.
- Add half of flour mixture and mix on low speed until incorporated, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed.
- Add orange juice and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Add remaining flour mixture and mix until just incorporated, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over entire surface.
- Bake until cake is deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs, 40 to 45 minutes.
- Let cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Remove side of pan and let cake cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours.
Notes
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Yes! I’ve used olive oil in cake before. Not often, but it does add something a little special. And any type of cake that involves citrus, I’m in. Really adds a nice oomph and flavour. Bet this one would be lovely right now with a cuppa coffee, the perfect way to kick off Monday. Hope you have a wonderful week, Kelly!
It’s a very special cake. So simple yet so elegant. It would be perfect with a cuppa coffee! Thanks so much, Dawn! Hope you have a lovey week as well!
I love that golden top! The cake must be very tender and delicious.
It’s unbelievably tender and moist! Thanks so much, Angie!
Gorgeous Cake! Get the kettle going, we will be right over! Love the little crunchy bits on the top and the moist cake. Perfect tea time cake.
You’re always welcome! It’s a lovely cake and the crunchy bits on top make it extra special. Thanks so much!
The first time I had an olive oil cake I fell in love with it. I’ve eaten more than one, but not made one until now. I have all the ingredients in the pantry, so a slice of your Orange Olive Oil Cake is destined to be setting next to my coffee soon. Thanks for sharing a great recipe that even a non-sweet baker like me can put together.
Ron, I’d say falling in love with it is exactly what we did! It requires little effort for a such a wonderful cake. Perfect with a cup of coffee. Thanks so much!
It would be a dream to drag my tongue along all that powdered sugar. You’ve got me craving this!
Haha! Yes it would! It’s a wonderful cake. Thanks so much, Umar!
Kelly, this cake looks fabulous! I personally love using olive oil in baked goods – it adds something special and makes it seem extra rich! I’d love to have a big slice of this with a cup of decaf coffee for dessert!
Olive oil really does make it extra special! A big slice with a cup of coffee would be wonderful! Thanks so much, Haylie!
Olive oil cake is a favorite of mine!! I love its tenderness with that perfect crackly top!! Gorgeous photos, my friend! I’ll put the coffee on! 😉
I love the combination of the moist, tender crumb and the crackly top. It adds a lovely rustic touch. Thanks so much for your kind words, Annie!
I love olive oil cakes! I usually make one with lemon and almond flour, but this orange cake looks PERFECT! I’m going to have to give it a try! Pinning!
Olive oil cakes are amazing! And lemon and almond flour sound delicious. Thanks so much, Laura!
I have been in such a citrus mood lately! This looks delicious!!!
Isn’t citrus wonderful? This is just the thing to satisfy those citrus cravings! Thanks so much, Mindee!
I’ve made Meyer lemon olive cake, but never orange. It sounds amazing and the texture of your cake looks absolutely perfect.
Oh Meyer lemon olive cake is wonderful! Olive oil pairs so well with citrus, really complements its flavor. Thanks so much, Marissa!
What a perfect cake for this time of year! Citrus is so wonderful right now – what a genius idea to make an orange cake. I bet the olive oil makes it SO moist! Yum!
I haven’t had a moister cake. It’s unbelievable! Thanks so much, Katherine!
hi kelly
this looks beautifully moist and delicious. olive oil gives such a lovely texture to cakes, doesn’t it? cheers sherry
It’s such a wonderful texture! A tender crumb that is so moist. Thanks so much, Sherry!
My wife served our visiting friends this orange olive oil cake with tea, it was a hit from the get go, all gone in 20 minutes.
That’s wonderful to hear! So glad they loved it. Thanks so much, Cookie Monster!
I’ve made a couple of olive oil cakes over the years, and they absolutely amaze me! In my head, it seems counter-intuitive that olive oil would lead to a good cake…but it does! (Then again, the same thing is true for mayo…although I’ve never tried baking a mayo cake myself.) The orange flavor here would be delicious for a snack with my coffee or as an evening treat. I love recipes that can double as both! Beautiful photos here, too (as always)!
Amazed is definitely how I would describe my first reaction to an olive oil cake. I’ve been holding out on the mayo cake, too! Guess I’ll have to give it a try next and see what it’s all about! Thanks so much for your kind words, David!
I have not ever used olive oil in a sweet dish. This sounds delicious and I’m curious about how it must taste. I’ll need to add this to my baking list and give it a try!
I didn’t try it for the longest time. I must have grown up as a picky eater, afraid to try different things. Boy was I missing out. This cake is amazing! Thanks so much, Kathy!
I love baking all sorts of things with olive oil, but especially cakes. The flavors in this one sound lovely and your photos — as always — are beautiful.
The olive oil and orange give it a wonderful flavor! Thanks so much, Valentina!
Oh my gosh that crackling top is everything! What a beautiful cake and perfect with my morning coffee 🙂 . Take care.
Isn’t the crackling top just amazing?! Perfect with a cup of coffee! Thanks so much, Stacey!
Holy smoke ! Our kind of dish ! Beautiful Kelly !
It’s wonderful! Thanks so much, Davorka!
I’d definitely have this for breakfast! And snacks. And dessert, of course. 🙂 Neat cake — thanks.
If this cake is on the counter – we’re eating it – all day long! Thanks so much, John!
A beautiful cake. Olive oil sounds interesting, I have seen recipes before but I have never baked or tasted one myself. I’ve baked a cake with mayonnaise though once. 🙂 I should definitely try something with olive oil, the cake looks so moist and delicious.
It’s a lovely cake. The flavor and moist crumb are just amazing! Mayonnaise cake is next on my list! Thanks so much, Adina!
Now I’m craving cake! Great recipe 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
xo Ros
It’s impossible to stop eating this cake! It’s so good! Thanks so much, Ros!
I love how easy this is. I have been looking for a dessert for dinner this Friday and I think I just found it! I just got some wonderful juicy oranges at the market. Perfect for this!
It’s incredibly easy and really quite wonderful! Hope you enjoy it. Thanks so much, David!
I’ve never tried baking with olive oil but I’d so love to try this. That crackly top is just gorgeous. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
It’s an amazing cake! So tender and moist. The crackly top makes it extra special. Thanks so much, Marie!
I really enjoy olive oil cakes! I love the texture, and the crackly top on yours looks so good! Love the orange flavour too. Perfectly refreshing for spring!
It’s such a lovely cake! Thanks so much, Leanne!
what a cake! the crumb looks so moist and dense and delicious, with an awesome crackly top (:
It’s incredibly moist! And the crackly top adds a special touch! Thanks so much, Heather!
It is citrus harvest season in my town in Florida and this would be a terrific way to use fresh picked oranges. Thank you, I have pinned.
Karen, I’ve been in Florida during citrus harvest season and it’s just wonderful! The sight of those beautiful oranges on the trees was amazing! Thanks so much!
I haven’t made an olive oil cake in far too long! This one looks so good and my kind of simple cake!
It’s so delicious and I just love simple cakes. Thanks so much, Susan!
olive oil cakes are real gem to me and I love the ease of preparation and the flavor!
They’re so delicious and definitely a family favorite! Thanks so much, Mary!
Hi. If I wanted to make these as cupcakes, how long and what temperature would they have to bake?
Hi Sarah, I would bake them between 350 and 375 and judge their being done by how they look – the edges golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs on it.
Can you use gluten free flour in this recipe and would it be the same amount?
Hi, Eleanor. I haven’t tested it with gluten free flour so I’m not sure how it would turn out.
I used Bobs Red Mill GF 1 to 1 Baking Flour in this recipe today and it was great! Light, wonderful cake.
Great tasting cake. Made mine with almond flour as I’m gluten intolerant. Used half the amount of sugar. The batter was very liquidity. Cake ended up being very wet and grainy. Any suggestions?
Irene, I’ve not tried making this cake with almond flour so I don’t know what effect that would have. I’m guessing the almond flour doesn’t absorb liquid the same way all-purpose flour does. I did find an article on tips for baking with almond flour in place of all-purpose flour. https://type2diabetes.com/nutrition/baking-almond-flour/ Hope this helps!
Thank you very much for the recipe, I love any type of olive oil cake. This is a light, tasty, and healthy option, it tasted fantastic too!
I will definitely keep looking over the recipe when I have guests over. One thing I would recommend to increase the quality of the article, making it really useful for your readers would be to add nutrition facts to your dishes!
There are many sources that show the nutrition facts for ingredients like olive oil and garlic (which would go very well with your cracker recipe) https://mydietgoal.com/food-guide-catalog. It even lists the vitamins and mineral contents for any ingredient which would be super useful!
Thank you again for the fantastic olive oil cake recipe.
Regards,
Christopher Karam
Being dairy free and gluten free has been a challenge for me since I love to bake, so when I saw this recipe I decided to try gluten free flour and it turned out beautifully. You could not tell it was not made with wheat flour. My family couldn’t tell either, no one guessed! Before this I had not liked many gluten free, dairy free recipes I have tried. Just that simple substitution and it was fabulous. Yea!
Yay! That’s awesome, Denise! Thanks so much for sharing, I’m sure it will be helpful to so many others!
This was delicious! I made it for my birthday. I used fresh squeezed orange juice from organic oranges! I will definitely make it again.
So happy you liked it, Christina! Happy Birthday and thanks so much!
Thank you!
How much Orange Juice ? This cake looks and sounds like it’s made in Heaven
Hi Karen! It’s 3/4 cup of orange juice or 197 grams by weight. Thanks so much!
I’d love a lemon olive oil cake exactly like this one. Do you have a recipe to share for a lemon version?
I would love a lemon olive oil cake, as well! I will definitely be working on a recipe for one soon.
The best!
Thanks so much, Judy!
I tasted the batter before and after it was almost done. To me it tasted like olive oil. I followed the directions exactly even measured it by weighing the ingredients maybe it’s just my taste buds. .
Hi Amy, Maybe it’s the brand of olive oil or how strong it is. I use extra virgin olive oil and get a fruity flavor.
I’ve made this cake 3 times already! It’s so delicious!!!
So happy you liked it, Anna! Thanks so much!