I love an olive oil cake for the texture and flavor. Olive oil lends an earthy, sophisticated flair to a very simple cake. Add the savory note of rosemary and you’re practically transported to a Tuscan vineyard. A big pile of softly whipped cream and berries or supremed orange segments makes for a cake worthy of brunch, dessert, or even a decadent breakfast.
This recipe is by Lidey Hueck from her delightful new book, Cooking in Real Life. No wonder Ina Garten and Erin French took her into their kitchens, where she learned from the best.
Her career is one we dream about in culinary school, to work beside the greats. It was not the stove that brought her on this path, she was originally hired to sit behind a desk, but as is true for so many of us, food became her obsession.
There are many roads to a career; hers is both charmed and full of treasures. I find her recipes have that vibe as well. The title of her debut book says it all, Cooking in Real Life, which to me means we can pull off the recipes and keep going with our busy days. This olive oil cake is so quick and easy to make, as well as being super delicious.
Giveaway
[GIVEAWAY CLOSED! Congratulations to our three winners: Sheila, Steph, and Nancy!]
I’m thrilled to give away 3 copies of Cooking in Real Life! To enter, comment below and tell me about your go-to recipe (savory or sweet!). Must be 18 years of age to enter with a US address. Contest ends Sunday, April 28 at 11:59 p.m. central time. We’ll contact the winner via email shortly thereafter. You must respond to claim your prize within 48 hours or we’ll select a new winner.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (230g) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 4-inch fresh rosemary sprigs
- Nonstick cooking spray with flour, for the pan
- 1 1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup (160g) sour cream
- Grated zest of 2 lemons
- 1/3 cup (80g) freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
- 2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- Lightly sweetened whipped cream or confectioners’ sugar, for serving
- 3 small oranges for serving (optional)
Instructions
- In a small skillet or saucepan, combine the oil and rosemary sprigs. Bring to a simmer over medium heat until the rosemary begins to sizzle, then turn the heat to its lowest setting and cook for 5 minutes. Set aside to cool for 20 minutes, then discard the rosemary sprigs and pour the oil into a large bowl.
- Meanwhile, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan at least 2 inches deep with cooking spray, and line the bottom with parchment paper, then flour the sides.
- Add the sugar to the bowl with the rosemary oil and whisk until combined. Add the eggs and whisk vigorously until thick and glossy. Add the vanilla, sour cream, lemon zest, and lemon juice and whisk until smooth.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and whisk gently until only small lumps remain. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake until the edges of the cake are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean, 55 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool for 30 minutes in the pan before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Serve the cake at room temperature, with lightly sweetened whipped cream or a sprinkle of confectioners’ sugar and the orange segments, if using. Store covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
My go to recipe is a No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Pie. So, light and fresh.
My go to recipe is a homemade dumpling soup, so comforting and flavorful.
My favorite go to is chocolate oatmeal bundt cake with quick caramel icing…. Husband’s favorite cake.
This lemon rosemary cake looks delicious.
This cake looks a treat. My go to is Rose Levy Beranbaum’s banana cake with chocolate sour cream ganache.
Hello all. So many favorites. When I am feeling inspired and want to have something special, I turn to my mother’s family’s version of Eggplant Parmesan. My whole life I have never come across a preparation that is the same as the Fusco girls (my mother and her sisters maiden name) recipe. I delight in converting eggplant haters to lovers of this delectable vegetable when cooked and prepared this way. The recipe has never been written down, it’s passed on in the old tradition of observation and first-hand experience. Part of what is uniquely woven into the preparing of this dish is the good company of memories, of cooking and sharing time with my mother, in addition to the joy of making, serving and sharing this delicious meal.
A family favorite. Pineapple upside down cake. Brown sugar, butter and nuts for carmel-ly goodness.
My go-to is a recipe we call Princess Brownies in my family–brownies with a slightly sweet cream-cheese swirl. Crispy on the edges, and cakey in the middle, with a gooey cream cheese that just balances out the sweetness of the chocolate!
Love Lidey’s new book and looking forward to cooking from it many times!
My easiest go to dessert… Pecan, graham craker, and browned butter crust chocolate cream pie topped with whipped cream and shaved bittersweet chocolate.
My go-to recipe is Pavlova! It’s simple yet dramatic, can hold any topping (I love mixed berries). It’s somehow both decadent *and* light and airy. I love it!
This recipe looks great and easy to try.
My go-to is a chocolate cake that we call “the family cake” as it is something we had growing up. It is a simple chocolate cake with a cup of hot coffee that bakes up dark, moist and a but fudgy. Never fail recipe-
My go to recipe would be either your lemon pound cake recipe or an easy strawberry rhubarb galette made with some spelt flour in the crust. Or a blueberry rye pie. So hard to choose!
This cake looks fantastic – and couldn’t be better timed (I was just looking for something to make with the suddenly abundant rosemary from my garden 🙂 ). I’m always experimenting, so it’s hard to pick a go-to, but mine is probably an old shortbread recipe that I’ve adapted into different versions over the years (almond, brown butter-hazelnut, coconut-pandan, peppermint…). And, of course, your amazing Devil’s Food cake, which never fails – and goes with just about everything 🙂 (my mom is a chocolate person, so I’ve made several birthday cakes with it, each year with a different filling: raspberry-pistachio, banoffee, coconut and salted caramel, cannoli, peanut butter buttercream and toffee, cookies & cream…).
An almond marzipan cake that is quick to put together. I make the almond paste – another quick and easy aspect. This beauty falls into the category of “simple, elegant, and delicious.”
(I just read the Lemon-Rosemary-Olive Oil recipe but haven’t made, so…Rating will have to be for my own recipe?!)
My go-to is a recipe I developed for an irresistibly rich, positively addictive buttery French almond cake I fell in love with several decades ago called Pain de Gênes. The baker who used to make the cake owned a small bake shop on Eastern Long Island. When the shop closed, in about 1978, Bess, the baker, took all her secrets with her. (She wouldn’t even divulge the recipe for her walnut cake with chocolate frosting to Craig Claiborne, then the food editor at the New York Times, who shopped there often.) The Pain de Gênes was a kind of holy grail of cakes for me. It took a long time to nail the recipe, but now that I have, I love baking it and sharing it. (My recipe can be found on Food52.)
This recipe looks delicious and I am looking forward to baking it. My go to recipe for a couple of years now has been the rye bread recipe from your cookbook The Best of Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. It’s now embedded in my memory bank and there’s always a container of rye dough in my fridge these days. We love it:)
Can’t wait to try this olive cake recipe! It’s next on my list. My go to is a lemon blueberry bundt cake although i’ve recently been making a variation using jiffy cornbread mix with a cup of frozen blueberries. Super simple. Increase the cooking time by about 10 minutes. Who knew?!?!?! Cornbread and blueberries!!!
My current go-to (things change with the seasons in my kitchen) is the IP American-Style Goulash from the Washington Post (via cookbook author Gina Homolka). Every time I make it, my husband gushes, and it truly does get better with age. PLUS, it’s so easy—huge return for very little time or effort invested.
Lately, I am enjoying the Multigrain Pancakes from Super Natural Simple (Heidi Swanson) for breakfast.
My go-to recipe is a chicken pot pie with a biscuit topping. My sweet go-to is chocolate chip cookie bars.
This looks both beautiful and delicious. My go-to recipe is Laura Bush’s Cowboy Cookies. Makes a lot! Perfect for sharing.
I love olive oil cakes. I started following you on Instagram a couple of years ago. I’ve already learned how to make bread from your Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes book but I am yet to buy any of your other books. Anyways, my current go-to recipe is for Bon Appetit’s Burnt Basque Cheesecake. It is sublime and repeatable.
Ziad
My favorite go to savory is baking a rosemary and olive bread. The aroma, playing with dough, and dreaming of eating a slice at a long wood table outdoors in Tuscany. And, LOL I Savor the thought!
My go to recipe is Indian Fry Bread Tacos and it would be wonderful if you would give that an update. It is good the kids love it, but I made your Oatmeal, Rum Rasin Cookies and they were just above all others. Could you revamp the toco recipe?
What a beautiful cake✨ My go to cake recipe is a very similar cake but uses almond flour (I’m gf). I love the idea of simmering the rosemary in the oil for the fragrance, since it is such an overpowering herb. Would love a copy of Lidey’s book❣️
I’ve always felt ambivalent about Olive Oil Cakes but this one looks so delicious that I am inspired to make it! It’s really hard to pick just one go to recipe, lol. But I would say it’s Nutmeg forward Donut Muffins that I stuff with a frozen ball of Nutella before baking and then I dip and roll the whole thing in cinnamon sugar. They’re so delicious.