- June 11, 2020
- Jessie Sheehan
- Cakes
- 8 Comments on Olive Oil Pound Cake
5 from 3 votes
Pound cake is simple. Flavored with a lot of vanilla, with a tight crumb, it's a cake for anytime. This olive oil pound cake replaces butter with olive oil.
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I know, I know: when you think of pound cake, you think of butter so how could I possibly be writing about and sharing a recipe for an olive oil pound cake. Well, because to me, a pound cake is a simple cake, it is a cake flavored with a lot of vanilla, it is a cake with a tight crumb, it is a cake for breakfast or a late morning snack, but it is also dessert after a dinner party “cake” when topped with freshly whipped cream and mixed berries. In other words, it is a flexible cake, an anytime cake – and whether it has butter or olive oil matters little – and this is that cake.
I was inspired to develop a pound cake recipe after receiving Angela Garbacz‘s book, Golden Rod Pastries, and giving her “best pound cake” a whirl. I made it with butter (but she gives you the choice of using shortening, as her book offers dairy free (and gluten free) substitutes throughout, and it was sublime. I knew I needed to develop an olive-oil based recipe for my weekly baking series with Colavita Olive Oil, and so the olive oil pound cake was born . . .
I made the cake using a stand mixer, in order to try and incorporate air into the oil, sugar and eggs, just as you would if creaming butter, but honestly, when I make this again, I will be making the whole thing in a single bowl with a whisk snd a spatula (ie: I will be one-bowl-ing it). The easier the better is kind of how I think of baking right around now (and, truly, always . . . ). And so, in the interest of easy, this cake has no citrus zest or juice, no chocolate chips or nuts, no jam swirl – no nothing. Simple is the name of the game, here, and thus the cake only calls for 6 ingredients, not including (the non-negotiable) salt and vanilla. Enjoy, peeps, and do let me know how it turns out.
Olive Oil Pound Cake Recipe
Print Pin
5 from 3 votes
Olive Oil Pound Cake
Pound cake is simple. Flavored with a lot of vanilla, with a tight crumb, it's a cake for anytime. This olive oil pound cake replaces butter with olive oil.
Recipe Author Jessie Sheehan
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup mild olive oil preferably Colavita
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 5 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole milk
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan with non-stick spray, olive oil or softened butter.
Combine the oil, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until combined.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy about 5 minutes.
Sprinkle the baking powder, salt and half of the flour over the batter. On low speed, mix until just combined. Add the milk and mix again. Add the final cup of flour and mix until a few streaks of flour remain. Continue mixing with a rubber spatula.
See AlsoOlive Oil Cake RecipeTransfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 55 to 65 minutes until a cake tester comes out with a moist crumb or two.
Let cool before slicing with a serrated knife.
The cake will keep on the counter for up 3 days tightly wrapped in plastic wrap.
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Cakes Olive Oil
Hi Jessie, this is a completely compulsive question (but I am kind of a compulsive baker!) — do you know how many grams of all purpose flour there are in one cup in your recipes? If not, can you tell me whether you measure flour by spooning it into a cup and leveling it, or if you dip the measuring cup directly into the flour container and then level it? I’m hoping to have this cake turn out the way you intended it, and my understanding is that the way you measure flour can affect the amount you are adding to the recipe. Thank you!
I get it Cari! I am, too. So my flour cups are on the heavy side because I scoop and level – and I don’t even fluff up the flour before doing so. I’d say about 135 grams? Good luck and let me know if you have any other queries!
Thank you so much! I just wrote that down on the recipe and I’ll give it a try — I love olive oil cakes, and this one looks terrific!
yay!
Can you use 2% milk?
Yes!
Can this be done in a Bundt pan? Thanks!
I have never done so – but cannot imagine that it wouldn’t work? Bake time might be a tad longer however . . .
