{"id":7814,"date":"2021-01-27T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2021-01-27T16:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/villasentieri.com\/?post_type=recipe&p=7814"},"modified":"2026-09-02T10:58:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:58:37","slug":"olive-oil-cake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/villasentieri.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/27\/olive-oil-cake\/","title":{"rendered":"Olive Oil Cake (Torta all\u2019Olio d\u2019Oliva)"},"content":{"rendered":"

January 27, 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you come up with another name?\u201d<\/p>\n

That was my husband\u2019s response when I said I was going to post a recipe for olive oil cake.<\/p>\n

I suggested the Italian, Torta all\u2019Olio d\u2019Oliva.\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t amused.<\/p>\n

I guess he thinks the idea of olive oil in cake isn\u2019t appetizing.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, the cake is a staple in regions surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.\u00a0 And a delicious one, at that!<\/p>\n

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Oranges at a biodynamic citrus grove in Calabria near the Italian Culinary Institute<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There are endless variations.\u00a0 Some are thin, barely an inch tall.\u00a0 Some are savory-sweet.\u00a0 Some barely reveal the presence of olive oil.\u00a0 Others proclaim the flavor of olive oil loudly.\u00a0 Some are good for snacking (with tea or coffee).\u00a0 And a few are actually good enough to serve for dessert with no embellishment.<\/p>\n

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Then there\u2019s the olive oil to consider.\u00a0 Even among really good extra-virgin olive oils, and I do suggest you use really good extra-virgin olive oil, there is a range of flavor profiles.\u00a0 Words like grassy, bitter, peppery, fruity, and buttery come to mind.<\/p>\n

Which you use will influence the flavor of the cake.\u00a0 All will be good but some may be more to your liking than others.<\/p>\n

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Freshly grated orange zest is key to the flavor of this olive oil cake<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Honestly, though, does the world need another recipe for Torta all\u2019Olio d\u2019Oliva?<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a rhetorical question, right?<\/p>\n

I mean, really, we wouldn\u2019t ask if the world needed another recipe for chocolate cake.\u00a0 We\u2019d just lean into it and make it happen.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve never had olive oil cake, and if you like to bake, I suggest giving this version a try.\u00a0 It has a moist crumb, crunchy top (from brown sugar), and a hint of orange from orange zest and orange liqueur.<\/p>\n

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This cake is suitable as dessert, not just snacking.\u00a0 It\u2019s not going to be a spectacle of a dessert, like the Maraschino Cherry Cake<\/a> I made from the first edition Betty Crocker Picture Cookbook, but I believe it will surprise many of your guests with just how good it is.<\/p>\n

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Large crystals of brown sugar, such as Turbinado or Zucchero di Canna add crunch to the top of the cake<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now for the apology:\u00a0 I prefer to cook, and I DEFINITELY prefer to bake, using the metric system.\u00a0 It\u2019s just so much easier to scale recipes up and down.\u00a0 Also, among professional bakers, most ingredients are weighed, even liquids.\u00a0 Without a scale that measures in fractions of a gram, however, it is not practical to weigh small amounts of ingredients like baking powder and salt.\u00a0 For these, I stick to teaspoons and tablespoons when I publish recipes though I often weigh these ingredients, too.\u00a0 Remember, though, that a standard teaspoon is now treated as if it were 5 ml, and a tablespoon 15 ml, even though both are just a smidge less, at least in America.<\/p>\n

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We picked a few oranges for a course on preserves at the Italian Culinary Institute<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Although the recipe app will convert metric measures to non-metric, I\u2019ll be happy to supply anyone with ingredient quantities in the typical volume-based American system upon request.

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Olive Oil Cake (Torta all\u2019Olio d\u2019Oliva)<\/h2>\n
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This is a cake which definitely benefits from sitting, tightly covered, at room temperature for two days before serving. The flavors mellow and the olive oil diffuses throughout the cake. For the topping, use a brown sugar that is not soft and moist but rather granular. Use a good quality orange liqueur such as Arancello (sometimes called orangecello in the United States) or Grand Marnier.<\/div>\n
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Prep Time <\/span>20 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Cook Time <\/span>1 hour<\/span><\/span> hr<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Total Time <\/span>3 hours<\/span><\/span> hrs<\/span> 20 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
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Servings: <\/span>12<\/span> people<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Ingredients
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