Kicking off the Reader’s new Recipes section with a neighbor’s lemon–olive oil cake. Using olive oil instead of butter is the trick to that soft, moist crumb — oil stays liquid at room temperature, so the cake melts in your mouth rather than firming up. Three forms of lemon (zest, juice, and extract) keep it bright and not too sweet, and a little almond flour rounds everything out. Serve it simply — dusted with confectioners’ sugar, with fresh fruit, or a spoonful of good jam.
Makes one 9-inch cake · Prep 20 minutes · Cook 40 minutes · Total 1 hour
Ingredients
- ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 to 2 teaspoons for greasing the pan
- 1¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest (from about 1 lemon)
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
- ½ cup milk (any dairy or nondairy milk works)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup superfine almond flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Confectioners’ sugar, for topping (optional)
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper and generously grease the sides with olive oil.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the granulated sugar, eggs, and lemon zest on medium-high until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Lower the speed to medium-low and slowly stream in the ¾ cup olive oil until fully incorporated. Stop the mixer and add the lemon juice, milk, vanilla, and lemon extract; mix on medium-low until combined.
- Add both flours, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix on medium-low just until no streaks of flour remain, scraping down the bowl as needed — don’t overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it to the edges. Bake until golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out mostly clean (a crumb or two is fine), 35 to 40 minutes.
- Cool the cake completely in the pan on a rack. Run a knife around the edge, flip the cake out onto a plate, peel off the parchment, then flip it back right-side up onto a serving plate. Dust with confectioners’ sugar if you like, slice, and serve.
Pro tip: When they’re in season, Meyer lemons — a sweeter, more floral winter lemon with a little less acidity — are lovely in this cake.
From the cookbook Sweet Tooth by Sarah Fennel — find it on Amazon. Shared by E. Hinkson.
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