Easy Lemon Olive Oil Cake (Moist and Delicious Recipe)
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Lemon Olive Oil Cake is a light, citrusy Italian dessert that I make often. This cake has a delicate, lemony flavor, and thanks to the olive oil, a moist, tender crumb. A dusting of powdered sugar makes this a perfectly elegant dessert.
I come from an Italian family of lemon lovers! I am especially enamored with this tart citrus, as you can see from the number of recipes on this site I have made with it. One of my favorites is Limoncello Mascarpone Cream cake, which I top with lemon curd.
My cousin has a lemon tree in her greenhouse that grows the most enormous lemons I have ever seen outside of Sorrento. When she brought me a huge basket of them, I quickly got to work finding ways to all those fresh lemons. This moist lemon cake was one of the first things I made.
This cake is so easy to make that it has become one of my go-to recipes. I mean, I made this lemon olive oil cake recipe 3 times just in the last week, so I can attest that not only is it easy to make, but the consensus in my family is that it is delicious.
What’s So Great About This Lemon Olive Oil Cake
What I love about this easy lemon cake recipe is that it is not at all pretentious or complicated. It’s just perfectly light, tender, and lemony. The olive oil creates a lovely, moist texture, but you would never know that it is in the cake.
The best thing is that this Italian lemon cake is so delicious it doesn’t need frosting. I simply sprinkle confectioners’ sugar on it as a finishing touch, and it adds just the right amount of extra sweetness. It is especially tasty with a drizzle of strawberry compote!
Everyone needs a simple cake recipe that impresses no matter what the occasion and this is it! I must say that this has become one of my favorite cakes!
Ingredients, Substitutions, and Notes
This olive oil cake recipe is made with basic ingredients, so there is no need for a special trip to the grocery store.
All-purpose flour: Measure the flour by spooning it into the measuring cup and level it off. This will ensure that you don’t use more flour than you need in the recipe.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda: Both provide the leavening the cake needs to produce its light texture. Make sure that they have not expired.
Fresh Lemon Juice and Zest: It is easiest to zest the lemon before cutting and juicing it. Try not to get the white pith from the rind in the lemon zest, as it may be bitter.
Large Eggs: The eggs should be at room temperature so that they blend easily.
Olive oil: You can use either regular olive oil, which has a lighter flavor profile, or extra virgin olive oil. Both will create a moist crumb.
Milk: I use room temperature whole milk, but you can use 2% of 1% milk in this recipe.
Step by Step Instruction
1.Prepare the oven and pan: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment paper, grease, and flour it then set it aside. Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Mix wet ingredients: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the eggs and sugar until fluffy and pale yellow. Mix in the lemon juice and zest and vanilla.
With the beaters running, add the olive oil in a slow stream until it is evenly blended.
3. Add the dry ingredients and milk: Add 1/3 of the flour mixture. When it is just absorbed mix in 1/2 of the milk. Alternate the flour and milk ending with the flour. Stop mixing the batter as soon as the flour is absorbed.
Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 55-60 minutes. A toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center of the cake should come out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes before releasing the sides of the pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar.
Baking Tips for the Perfect Cake
- Cover the outside of the springform pan with aluminum foil in case the cake batter leaks out of the bottom of the pan. Trust me it will save you from having to clean up a mess in the bottom of your oven!
- Don’t overmix the cake batter or the cake will be dense or fall. As soon as the flour is absorbed stop mixing it.
- If the top of the cake starts to brown too quickly, tent it with foil.
- When you remove the cake from the oven, gently run a knife along the edge of the cake to make sure that it separates from the sides of the pan.
- Let the cake cool completely before cutting it.
Variations and Serving Suggestions
- This recipe works well as an orange olive oil cake as well. Simply substitute the lemon juice and zest for orange juice and zest.
- Mix some finely chopped rosemary or thyme into the batter for a lemon herb olive oil cake.
- For more fresh lemon flavor. top the cake with a lemon glaze.
- This easy cake makes a refreshing dinner party dessert when paired with fresh berries and whipped cream.
Storage Recommendations
This moist cake can be stored at room temperature. Covered with aluminum foil or plastic wrap, it can be stored in a cool place for several days. It can also be refrigerated for up to a week. If you do refrigerate it, take it out and let it come to room temperature before serving.
FAQ’s
The olive oil in this lemon cake gives it a subtle fruity flavor. You really don’t taste the olive oil in this cake. Olive oil works pairs well with citrus like lemon and oranges.
As with many key ingredients in a recipe, it is important to use a good quality olive oil. Inferior ingredients can impact the taste of any recipe.
This lemon olive oil cake recipe does not need to be refrigerated. It is fine to store it at room temperature once it is covered with aluminum foil or plastic wrap. If you frost it with a glaze or buttercream, I recommend refrigerating it to keep it fresh longer.
The key to creating a soft and tender crumb in an olive cake is properly adding and emulsifying the olive oil into the eggs and sugar. It needs to be slowly added in a stream while the beaters are running and beaten until it is fully absorbed into the batter. This ensures that the fat and protein are well combined, keeps the batter from splitting, and adds air at the same time. The result is a moist and fluffy crumb.
Other Lemony desserts
For a simple treat, try my Anginetti cookies or Lemon Ricotta Cookies. They are soft, tender, and oh-so yummy! You will also love my Lemon Pistachio Biscotti , which are perfect with a cup of afternoon tea.
I can’t forget every lemon lover’s dream: Lemon Meringue Pie! This old-fashioned recipe is my brother’s absolute favorite dessert!
I love to get your feedback, so if you try this Lemon Olive Oil Cake or any other recipe on this website, please leave me a comment below. I hope you enjoy our recipes, and I look forward to hearing from you!
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for more recipes your family will love!
Easy Lemon Olive Oil Cake Recipe
Easy Lemon Olive Oil Cake
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Equipment
- 1 Springform pan 9"
Ingredients
- 2½ cups All Purpose Flour
- 1½ tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 3 Eggs large, room temperature
- 1¼ cups Sugar
- ⅓ cup Lemon Juice
- Zest of One Lemon
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Olive Oil
- ¾ cups Milk room temperature
- 1-2 tbsp Powdered Sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line the bottom of a 9" springform pan with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the sugar and eggs with an electric mixer at medium speed until they become light yellow, for about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the lemon juice, zest, and vanilla extract and mix until blended. Add the olive oil with the beater running in a slow stream until it is well mixed.
- Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and beat on low speed until it is just incorporated. Add 1/2 of the milk and beat until it has blended. Alternate with the flour and milk, finishing with the flour. Mix just until the flour is fully blended and stop so as not to over beat the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Cover the outside of the pan with aluminum foil in case the pan leaks. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife along the rim of the cake to loosen it from the sides before releasing the sides of the pan. Gently place the cake on a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
- *If the top of the cake starts to brown too quickly, loosely tent it with aluminum foil.
Notes
Baking Tips
- Cover the outside of the springform pan with aluminum foil in case the cake batter leaks out of the bottom of the pan. Trust me, it will save you from having to clean up a mess at the bottom of your oven!
- Don’t overmix the cake batter or the cake will be dense or fall. As soon as the flour is absorbed, stop mixing it.
- If the top of the cake starts to brown too quickly, tent it with foil.
- When you remove the cake from the oven, gently run a knife along the edge of the cake to make sure that it separates from the sides of the pan.
- Let the cake cool completely before cutting it.
I don’t know why it wouldn’t let me click 5 stars, but this was definitely 5. Enza, everyone loved it at Christmas! I normally make some of your other recipes that my grandmother would make us growing up. But she passed away just 2 weeks before Christmas. So this was something perfect – still Italian but not something anyone had tried before. Thank you!
Marianne I am so sorry to hear that you lost your grandmother.
Thank you for letting me know that you all enjoyed this cake! best wishes for a Happy New Year!