Classic Olive Oil Cake
but variations offered below
Just as it seems everyone has their tradition for chocolate chip cookies, I argue everyone has their own tradition for making vanilla. For some, this means simply following the instructions on the side of a blue box—adding eggs and oil in equal part. For others, this might mean beating egg whites by hand to fold into the batter of a Victoria Sponge, the recipe for which was probably written in ornate cursive on the back of a notecard that once belonged to someone’s grandmother.
My own vanilla cake, which uses olive oil instead of canola oil for richness and citrus for brightness, was originally inspired by the birthday of one of my friends many years ago. Although it has evolved into its current iteration, it has become, to some extent, the first tradition of my own my own making. It is all the things I find good. It is fool-proof, forgiving, reliable and accessible. It’s emblematic of my life in New York, the basis of the cake business which I ran out of my studio apartment for some years. And will surely be the thing I pass down to my children, in addition to a run down copy of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and my dreadful lack of patience. And now, I pass it unto you, to make into your own, your own tradition, your own reason to celebrate. I share it with love, xx.
Ingredients
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract (can be almond, orange, rose water)
1 cup granulated sugar
Zest from 1 citrus of choice*
Juice of 1/2 citrus
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1-1/4 cups AP flour
1/2 cup whole wheat or whole spelt flour**
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup club soda (make sure this is still carbonated, flat soda won’t work)
Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, gently whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In a separate bowl, combine sugar and zest. Using your fingers, massage the zest into the sugar, this will help bring out the natural oils and flavor of the citrus.
In a medium bowl, beat eggs and vanilla on high for about 3 minutes until bubbles form on the surface.
Add in sugar/zest and beat on high, 5-8 minutes, until the mixture has significantly lightened in color—they will take on a shade of pale yellow—and is smooth.
With the mixer on low, stream in olive oil slowly. Mix until combined and then and in citrus juice. Once it’s combined, add club soda and mix just until everything comes together.
Pour into 9” cake round or any cake pan you want, sprayed and lined with parchment. Bake for 35-45 mins. It is fully cooked when a toothpick once inserted comes out clean or when you gently press down on the top with two fingers it springs back.
Remove from the oven and let it cool in the pan about 10 minutes. Flip out of the pan onto a wire rack to let finish cooling completely, at least 30 minutes to an hour. Meanwhile make your frosting.
**If you don’t have whole wheat or spelt, you can replace with AP flour
Variations
For Orange Upside Down Olive Oil Cake
To Assemble
Make your cake batter using the recipe above. Optional but encouraged: add 1 tsp of cardamom.
Make the topping, melt 1/4 cup unsalted butter in a small sauce pan. Add in 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla and a heaping pinch of salt. Whisk to combine. Let cool.
Meanwhile, slice your oranges. You will need 4 large or 5-6 medium navel or blood oranges.
To assemble: Line a 9-inch cake pan with a piece of parchment paper. Pour brown sugar mixture into the base of the pan and overlay with orange slices, arranged in concentric, overlapping circles. Gently, pour in your cake batter. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the cake is golden brown and springs back when you gently press down on its top.
To serve: Let cool completely. Once cooled, flip onto a plate or platter by covering the cake pan with your serving dish, keeping them together, rotating 180 degrees. Remove parchment paper. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream when the time comes.
For Chocolate Olive Oil Cake
For your citrus: Either omit or orange
Optional: Sub zest for 1 tablespoon espresso powder
To your batter:
Replace 1/2 cup whole wheat flour with: 1/2 cup 100% dutch cocoa powder
For Vanilla Chai Olive Oil Cake
For your citrus: Orange
To your batter, add:
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cloves or nutmeg
Increase club soda amount to 1/3 cup