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- This cake gets its flavor from extra‑virgin olive oil and orange zest, which impart a fruity, aromatic richness distinct from traditional butter-based cakes.
- The one-bowl batter is created by whipping eggs, sugar, and zest until smooth, then slowly incorporating olive oil and finally folding in dry ingredients, resulting in a moist and tender crumb.
- Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, this cake keeps beautifully for up to four days — perfect for a make-ahead dessert or weekday slicing.
Frank Castronovo and Frank Falcinelli have been producing a fruity extra-virgin olive oil in Sicily since 2007; they use it in their cooking and sell it at their restaurants and online. Executive chef Will Prunty created this cake to showcase the oil at the now-shuttered coffee shop Cafe Pedlar.
What type of olive oil do you use for baking?
For most cakes made with oil, it’s important to use one that’s neutral-tasting, such as vegetable or sunflower oil, so that other flavors can shine through. That’s not the case here: Since this recipe relies primarily on olive oil and a bit of orange zest for flavor, you’ll want to choose a quality mid-range extra-virgin olive oil (not your priciest bottle of expensive finishing oil). Extra-virgin olive oil is cold-pressed and unrefined, so it retains all those special flavor notes — fruity, floral, citrusy, buttery — that make this cake unique. Be sure your oil is fresh, preferably within 18 months of harvest.
Cake flour vs. all-purpose flour
For a soft, tender crumb, this recipe calls for cake flour. Not only is it milled finer than all-purpose flour, but it’s also much lower in protein, containing 6% to 8% as opposed to 10% to 12%. This means there’s less gluten development, so the cake will be lighter and more delicate.
Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen
- Take care to butter every crevice of your bundt pan before coating in flour to prevent sticking and preserve the cake’s shape.
- To maximize and evenly distribute the orange zest’s natural oils, use your fingers to rub it into the sugar before adding the eggs and beating all together.
- Dress up the finished cake with a simple dusting of powdered sugar, if desired.
