Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake
A delicious summertime cake that is easier than it looks
Servings: 12 slices
Calories: 200kcal
Cost: $30
Equipment
- 9 or 10 inch standard cake pan (springform or regular)
- parchment paper
- electric or hand mixer
- spatula
- sharp knife
Ingredients
- 2 medium blood oranges
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 1⅓ cups cake flour
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp blood orange zest grated
- 1 tbsp lemon zest grated
- 2 tbsp Cointreau or another orange liqueur
- 3 eggs
- 1¼ cup olive oil
- additional olive oil for greasing
Instructions
- To prep, preheat the oven to 400°F and move the rack to the middle. Grease your cake pan with a touch of olive oil. Line the greased pan with parchment paper, and then grease the parchment paper as well.
- Take each orange and slice off both ends (so you should have four orange ends) and set them aside. Slice the oranges into thin rounds, trying not to exceed ⅛ or so inch in thickness. You can leave the rind on. You should have at least 12-16 slices.
- Into a medium bowl, squeeze the juice out of the orange ends, producing a tablespoon of more of juice. Dump in lemon juice and stir it together. Then add the ⅓ cup of sugar to the bowl and whisk it together, until the sugar melds with the juice and creates a pink slurry. Dump this evenly into cake pan and spread it out carefully with a spoon and your fingers, attempting to cover the bottom of the pan.
- Carefully line the pan with the oranges slices, starting from one corner and layering the oranges in rows. The oranges should overlap a little bit but the goal is to cover as much surface area with the oranges as possible.
- In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, all purpose flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a larger bowl (this one is where everything will be combined), crack the eggs. Add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and then beat on medium and then high speed for 3-5 minutes, until the eggs are white, creamy and thick (but still pourable). It should look pretty whipped at this point.
- Next, add in the olive oil. If using a hand mixer, add it in 2 increments. If using a stand mixer, just drizzle it in slowly. Beat on high speed until well incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients in 2-3 increments, mixing on low speed to prevent flour from going everywhere. Once everything is combined, scrape down the sides with a spatula. Add in the Cointreau, lemon zest and orange zest and mix one more time for about 20 seconds. The batter should look well combined.
- Carefully pour the batter into the cake pan, making sure not to move the orange slices sitting in the bottom of the cake. Transfer the cake to the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes, until knife comes out clean once inserted. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- If you are not using a springform pan, place a plate, cake stand or tray upside down on the cake pan and hold both sides firmly. Then, flip the cake 180°, so the cake pan is now facing down and the white part of the cake is now sitting at the bottom. Remove the pan slowly, and then remove the parchment paper to reveal the beautiful top. Slice and enjoy!