Gluten Free Olive Oil Cake

This gluten free olive oil cake has a tender crumb, bright, lemony flavor, just enough sweetness, and a richness unique to baking with olive oil. It stays fresh on the counter for days, and you can make it dairy free with ease!

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What makes this cake work

Olive oil has a distinct flavor, so it's not commonly used in baking sweets. In fact, even oil-based cakes, like our gluten free carrot cake, are typically made with a neutral-tasting oil, like canola, vegetable, grapeseed, or peanut oil.

In this recipe, though, everything from adding buttermilk to using lemon zest is designed to brighten and enhance the distinct flavor of olive oil. So be sure to use an oil with a rich taste you love.

This easy recipe is also made in only one bowl. You need a mixer to beat the olive oil with sugar and then eggs until creamy, but then you sift the dry ingredients right into the same bowl to create a soft batter that bakes quickly and evenly.

Key ingredients

The ingredients you'll need to make this olive oil cake are similar to those we use in most of our cakes, with a few notable exceptions:

• Gluten free flour – Any high quality all purpose gluten free flour blend with a superfinely ground rice flour, in combination with cornstarch to lighten it, will work to make a tender cake. And be sure to sift the flour for the smoothest mouth feel!
• Olive oil – Select an olive oil with a smell and taste you love. Baking will only intensify the flavors, like with wine.
• Buttermilk – Be sure to use real buttermilk (or a real buttermilk substitute: half milk, half plain yogurt by volume), not milk with a bit of lemon juice, which doesn't mimic the texture properly. Here, it brings the batter together and adds moisture and tenderness.
• Lemon zest – The finely grated zest of 1 lemon brightens the flavor of the oil and creates perfect balance of acidity.

Recipe tips and tricks

Measure carefully

Measure as many ingredients as possible by weight with a scale, not by volume—especially your gluten free flours. Otherwise, you're very likely to measure improperly, and your cake may be dense (too much flour) or oily (too much oil).

Use good olive oil

You don't need fancy olive oil for this cake. You only need to like the taste and smell of your chosen oil. If you like your olive oil on a salad, you'll like it in this cake. I use extra virgin Spanish olive oil from Trader Joe's.

Beat well

Don't stop beating your olive oil, sugar, and eggs at the beginning of the recipe until the batter has increased in volume. It will also become a pale yellow color as you work to incorporate air into it. This step is part of what helps keep the cake from leaking oil or tasting oily.

Serving suggestions

I love this simple cake with simple fruit and cream toppings. Here are some more serving suggestions to turn a simple cake into a tiny celebration:

• Serve each slice with berries and fresh whipped cream, as you see in the photos here
• Serve with a fresh sprig of mint and some grapefruit or orange slices, supremed (with the entire membrane and pith cut away)
• Serve plain with a hot cup of coffee or bright, lemony tea

Storage instructions

One of the best parts about this gf olive oil cake is how well it stays fresh at room temperature for at least three days. Just wrap it tightly in individual slices or the unsliced remainder of the cake and store it on the counter.

Freezing gluten free olive oil cake

For longer storage, I don't like refrigerating cake, as I find the refrigerator can dry out baked goods. Instead, wrap each cooled slice tightly in freezer-safe wrap and place it in the freezer for up to two months.

Defrost at room temperature or by unwrapping, sprinkling with water, and in a 275°F toaster oven until fragrant and defrosted in the center.

Ingredient substitutions

Dairy free

It's quite easy to make this oil-based cake dairy-free. You only need to replace the buttermilk with a nondairy alternative. I recommend using half nondairy milk (my favorite is unsweetened almond milk) and half plain nondairy yogurt.

Vegan

To make this into a vegan gluten free olive oil cake, you'll need to replace the buttermilk as instructed above, plus the eggs. You can try replacing the eggs with a “chia egg” each (1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds + 1 tablespoon lukewarm water, mixed and allowed to gel).

Check your other ingredients carefully, too, if you're a strict vegan. Granulated sugar is often made using bone char.

Corn-free

If you can't have corn, you'll need to replace the cornstarch in this recipe. You can try arrowroot or even potato starch in its place. Avoid Cup4Cup gluten free flour entirely, as it's made with quite a bit of cornstarch.

FAQs

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Gluten Free Olive Oil Cake Recipe

4.97 from 29 votes

By Nicole Hunn

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Yield: 8 slices

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This gluten free olive oil cake is a super tender, moist treat with a lovely open crumb. It stays fresh for days!

Equipment

• Handheld mixer
• Flour sifter

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• ▢ 8 tablespoons (112 g) extra virgin olive oil, at room temperature
• ▢ 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs, at room temperature
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 cup (140 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend
• ▢ ½ teaspoon xanthan gum, omit if your blend already contains it
• ▢ ⅔ cup (5.333 fluid ounces) buttermilk, at room temperature
• ▢ ¼ cup (36 g) 36 g cornstarch
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest, from 1 large lemon
• ▢ Fresh whipped cream and berries, for serving (optional)

Instructions 

• Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease and line an 8-inch round pan, and set it aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, place the sugar and olive oil. Using a handheld mixer, beat the mixture together until creamy (about 1 minute).
• Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and salt, and beat until lighter in color and the mixture falls off the beater in ribbons (at least 2 minutes more).
• Into the large mixing bowl, sift the flour blend and xanthan gum and beat until just combined.
• Add the buttermilk, and beat again until just combined.
• Sift in the cornstarch, baking soda, and baking powder into the large mixing bowl, and beat again to combine.
• Add the lemon zest and mix to combine, breaking up any lumps in the zest. Be sure to scrape down and mix in any unincorporated flours on the side of the mixing bowl. The batter should be thickly pourable and pale yellow in color.
• Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Spread into an even layer with a moistened silicone or offset spatula.
• Sprinkle the top of the cake lightly with about another 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar in an even layer. This step is optional.
• Place the pan in the center of the preheated oven. Bake until the cake is lightly golden brown all over, has begun to pull away from the sides of the pan, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes away with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter (about 35 minutes).
• Remove the cake from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack until ready to serve.
• Slice and serve with fresh whipped cream and berries.

Video

Notes

Adapted heavily from Serious Eats Olive Oil Cake recipe.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 306kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.004g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 311mg | Potassium: 46mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 93IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 0.4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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