Orange Olive Oil Cake

Orange Olive Oil Cake with dried tart cherries will brighten even the dreariest wintry day! This quick and easy one bowl recipe makes two moist and flavorful loaf cakes. What a delicious way to get your vitamin C!

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When I was growing up, our butter dish contained margarine. Flavorless margarine was used for everything from “buttering” toast to cooking and baking.

When I was 12, my family moved to Europe for two years, with most of the time spent on the southern coast of Spain surrounded by olive trees. In Spain our kitchen contained olive oil.

That Spanish olive oil wasn’t the neutrally flavored, light and extra light olive oil on supermarket shelves today. Our Spanish olive oil was freshly pressed, in unmarked bottles, from the olive grove nearby. It smelled and tasted strongly like olives.

Everything you cooked with that Spanish olive oil, smelled and tasted like olives. Unfortunately, I really didn’t like olives!

Many years passed before I was willing to try olive oil again. I still don’t like olives, but I do like cooking and baking with olive oil. Light or extra light olive oil gives baked goods a moist, light texture with no added flavor.

I’ve been delighted with the results of using olive oil in cookies and in cakes. Olive oil makes my Very Chocolate Cookies soft and chewy. In Orange Olive Oil Cake, olive oil keeps the crumb light and moist.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT USING OLIVE OIL IN BAKING

Olive oil has been used in Mediterranean cooking and baking for centuries. The oil’s health benefits have helped it grow in popularity in the US and Canada. Because olive oil is a natural emulsifier, cakes baked with olive oil retain moisture longer than cakes made with dairy, an important quality for care package baking.

CAN YOU TASTE OLIVE OIL IN BAKING?

Extra light olive oil has very little, if any, taste or flavor and will not be detectable in baking. Another option is to use olive oil infused with flavors such as orange, lemon, or berry. My personal favorites come from Old Towne Oil in Chicago. (Not an affiliate link. I just love their products!)

CAN YOU SUBSTITUTE OLIVE OIL FOR VEGETABLE OIL IN BAKING?

Yes! After all, olive oil is also a vegetable oil. Substitute olive oil in equal quantities as the oil called for in a recipe.

CAN I SUBSTITUTE OLIVE OIL IN A BAKING RECIPE THAT CALLS FOR BUTTER?

Substituting oil for butter works well recipes that don’t depend on creaming of the butter and sugar to provide aeration and rise. Olive oil can be substituted in a ratio of three parts oil to 4 parts butter. For example, if the recipe calls for ½ cup (8 tablespoons) of butter, you would use 6 tablespoons of olive oil.

HOW TO MAKE ORANGE OLIVE OIL CAKE

1.  To prepare the loaf pans, grease and flour the short sides of each loaf mold and line the bottom and long sides with a strip of parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer or in a mixing bowl with a rubber spatula, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
3. Mix in the eggs, orange juice, orange zest, and olive oil until combined.
4. Fold in the chopped dried cherries.
5. Bake until the tops are deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean.
6. Allow the loaves to cool completely in the pan.
7. To remove the cakes from the pan, slide a knife between the short ends of the loaf and the pan to loosen then lift up using the parchment paper strip overhang as handles.

TIPS AND VARIATIONS FOR ORANGE OLIVE OIL CAKE

This flavorful loaf cake mixes up in minutes. Following these tips will ensure baking success.

• This versatile recipe can be prepared in a variety of shapes and sizes including one 9” round cake pan, two full sized 9” x 5” loaf pans, four small loaves 3” x 5 ½”, or 8 mini loaves 3 ¼” x 2 ½”.
• Lining the pan with parchment is essential for the loaf to come out of the pan intact. Many of the cherries will sink to the bottom of the loaf and stick to the pan if it isn’t lined.
• For an adults only version of this cake, substitute 3 tablespoons of the orange juice with 3 tablespoons of Grand Marnier or Amaretto.
• For easy, eye catching decorating, use any grill screen or grid as a stencil. Place the grid over the cake, sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar, and carefully lift up the grid.
• Serve this loaf (or mail it in a care package) with a fruity tea. Cherry tea is especially wonderful.

TOOLS AND INGREDIENTS YOU MAY NEED

 
MORE QUICK BREAD RECIPES

Coconut Milk Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

 Peanut Butter Fluff Banana Bread

Honey Applesauce Cake

Oatmeal Raisin Quick Bread

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

ORANGE OLIVE OIL CAKE RECIPE

Orange Olive Oil Cake is as versatile as it is delicious. Use this quick bread recipe to make multiple mini loaves for care packages and gifting. Use a regular sized loaf pan to make one loaf for you and another to share! 

The tart dried cherries add an extra layer of fruity flavor, but if you don’t like cherries, leave them out. The cake will still be bursting with citrus flavor.

Print

Orange Olive Oil Cakes

Adapted from "American Cake" by Anne Byrn

Keyword olive oil cake

Makes 2 5" x 9" loaves

Author The Monday Box

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup orange juice
• 2 teaspoons grated orange zest
• 2/3 cup light olive oil or orange infused olive oil
• 1/2 cup dried cherries chopped

Directions

1. To prepare the pan, grease and flour the short sides of each loaf mold. Cut a strip of parchment paper to line the bottom and long sides of each mold. The parchment strip should extend above each mold to use as handles when removing the loaves from the pan.
2. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer or in a mixing bowl with a rubber spatula, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
4. Mix in the eggs, orange juice, orange zest, and olive oil until combined.
5. Fold in the chopped dried cherries.
6. Divide the batter evenly into the prepared pans.
7. Bake for about 20 minutes (mini loaves) or about 30 minutes (regular loaves), until the tops are deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean.
8. Allow the loaves to cool completely in the pan (about 20 minutes).
9. To remove the cakes from the pan, use a knife between the short ends of the loaf and the pan to loosen, then lift up using the parchment paper strip overhang as handles.
10. Store well wrapped in plastic wrap in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Packing Tips

For mailing in care packages, this cake travels best in cool weather. For shipping times longer than 5 days, vacuum packing is recommended.

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