This blood orange olive oil cake is incredibly moist and perfectly infused with the flavors of extra virgin olive oil and the juice and zest of fresh blood oranges. For an extra dose of blood orange flavor, cake is layered and topped with a citrusy blood orange buttercream frosting. Coupled with the rich, robust flavor of extra virgin olive oil, this blood orange cake is simply divine!
What are Blood Oranges and When are They In Season?
Blood oranges are a variety of citrus fruits with a red interior varying from light to deep red. Sometimes this coloration may be seen on the skins of blood oranges as well. The red color is due to the presence of a pigment called anthocyanin which develops in these fruits as they are grown/ripen under cooler night temperatures.
Although blood oranges have a similar taste to other citrus fruits, they tend to have distinctive raspberry flavor notes as well and are in season from late December upto April.
How to Make Blood Orange Cake Recipe with Olive Oil
Put simply, this blood orange cake is super easy to make and comes together in a breeze! In my opinion, a cake should be moist with a tender crumb texture. That is exactly what you get with this from scratch cake recipe. To make blood orange cake you will need:
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Granulated Sugar
- Eggs
- Whole Milk Yogurt
- Fresh Blood Orange Juice and Zest
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Vanilla Extract
Tips For Making Moist Blood Orange Cake From Scratch
- Room Temperature Ingredients – to ensure that cake batter comes together smoothly without any lumps, all ingredients, specifically the refrigerated ingredients i.e. eggs and yogurt, should be brought to room temperature before using. Starting off with room temperature ingredients will also help against over mixing cake batter.
- Properly Measured Ingredients – taking the time to measure out the ingredients correctly will in turn result in a cake that is light with a delicate soft texture. For dry ingredients, in particular, the flour, I recommend using the spoon and level as opposed to the scoop and level measuring method. Spooning helps to break up the flour so that it is less compact which in turn helps in ensuring that the accurate amount of flour is being measured.
- Avoid Overmixing Batter – over mixing cake batter is never a good idea as it will most likely result in a cake that is dense and dry. The reason for this is that wheat based flour naturally has gluten in it and the more the gluten is worked, the more it develops resulting in a denser bake.
- Bake at Lower Oven Temperature – I tested baking this cake at 350F (175C) and 325F(165C) and found that the cakes baked at a lower temperature over a slightly longer timeframe had a softer, more moist texture. With that said, I highly recommend baking cake at the oven temperature of 325F(165C).
Blood Orange Buttercream Frosting
If you are a lover of citrus flavored desserts like I am, then this buttercream frosting perfectly infused with the sweet, zesty flavor of fresh blood oranges is right up your alley! Made with just 4 ingredients, this blood orange buttercream frosting is a dream. Here is what you will need to make it:
- Confectioners’ (Powdered) Sugar
- Unsalted Butter
- Fresh Blood Orange Juice
- Fresh Blood Orange Zest
How to Make Buttercream Frosting
Cream room temperature butter and blood orange zest until light and fluffy in appearance before mixing in the confectioners’ sugar. Once sugar is fully incorporated into buttercream slowly mix in the blood orange juice until a thick but spreadable buttercream frosting is achieved.
Assembly and Decoration of Blood Orange Cake with Olive Oil
- Level Cakes – using a cake lever or serrated knife, cut off the domed tops off cakes. This will help ensure that cakes stack up correctly without being lopsided.
- Layer with Buttercream – spoon and smooth out half of buttercream frosting onto first layer of cake. Place second cake layer top side down over buttercream before spooning and smoothing remaining buttercream on top.
- Decorate – when it comes to decorating this cake, you can get as creative as you like! I went for a mix of dried blood orange slices and fresh herbs but candied blood oranges and fresh flowers would be wonderful additions as well. I do not recommend using fresh blood oranges as decorative pieces as its juices may run into buttercream.
How to Store Cake
- Baked unfrosted cakes individually wrapped in plastic wrap will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator and 1-3 months in the freezer. When ready to use frozen cake, thaw out overnight in the refrigerator to restore soft texture.
- Blood orange buttercream frosting stored in an airtight container will last up to 1 week in the refrigerator and 3 months in the freezer. When ready to use frozen/refrigerated buttercream, simply thaw out at room temperature until soft enough to re-whip to smooth, fluffy consistency.
- Sliced cake layered with buttercream stored in an airtight container will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator and 1-3 months in the freezer. When ready to serve frozen cake slices, thaw out overnight in the refrigerator to restore soft texture.
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If you make this recipe, please make sure to let me know by tagging me @nourishedendeavors on Instagram or by leaving a comment in the comment section down below so I can find out how this recipe turned out for you! If you have any questions, ask away! I would love to answer your questions! Happy baking!
PrintBlood Orange Olive Oil Cake
This blood orange olive oil cake is incredibly moist and perfectly infused with the flavors of extra virgin olive oil and the juice and zest of fresh blood oranges. For an extra dose of blood orange flavor, cake is layered and topped with a citrusy blood orange buttercream frosting. Coupled with the rich, robust flavor of extra virgin olive oil, this blood orange cake is simply divine!
- Prep Time: 1 Hour
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 1 Cake 1x
Ingredients
Blood Orange Orange Cake with Olive Oil
- 1 3/4 Cups (219 g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, Spooned and Leveled
- 1 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
- 2/3 Cup (134 g) Granulated Sugar
- 3 Large Eggs, Room Temperature
- 5 oz Whole Milk Yogurt, Room Temperature
- 1/4 Cup + 3 Tablespoons (105 ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons (45 ml) Fresh Blood Orange Juice, Room Temperature
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- Zest (2) Blood Oranges
Blood Orange Buttercream
- 3/4 Cup (6 oz) Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature, Slightly Firm to Touch
- 1 1/2–2 Cups (165–220 g) Confectioners’ (Powdered) Sugar, Sifted
- 1 1/2–2 Tablespoons Fresh Blood Orange Juice, Room Temperature
- Zest (1) Blood Orange, Optional
Assembly
- Dried or Candied Blood Orange Slices, Optional
- Fresh Herbs or Flowers, Optional
Instructions
Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake
- Preheat oven to 325F(165C). Grease (2) 6-inch baking pans and line the base of each pan with 6” parchment paper circle cutouts. Alternatively, cake may be baked in a 8 or 9-inch round baking pan for a single layer option.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk ingredients together to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl, add the sugar and blood orange zest. Use a fork or finger tips to blend/incorporate zest into sugar until sugar takes on an orange tinted color and the fragrance of fresh oranges.
- In the bowl with orange infused sugar, add the olive oil. Using a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or a hand-held electric mixer, mix the sugar and oil together at medium speed to combine, about 1 minute. Next, mix in the yogurt.
- Beat eggs one at a time into wet batter ensuring that the previous egg is fully incorporated before adding and mixing in the next egg.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. In an alternating fashion, starting and ending with the flour mixture, mix half of the dry ingredients into wet batter followed by the blood orange juice and vanilla extract and ending with the remaining flour mixture.
- Stop mixer and use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides and base of mixing bowl.
- Resume mixing cake batter at medium speed for additional 30-60 seconds to help ensure an evenly smooth batter.
- Divide batter between prepared baking pans and bake for 25-30 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through bake time. Cakes are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool cakes in pan for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely to room temperature.
Blood Orange Buttercream
- In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl with a hand-held electric mixer, cream the butter and zest (optional) at medium high speed until mixture is smooth and fluffy in appearance, about 2-3 minutes.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and mix in 1 1/2 cups of the confectioners’ sugar into creamed butter. Gradually increase mixer speed back to medium.
- Once all the sugar has been incorporated into butter, mix in 1 ½ tablespoons fresh blood orange juice into buttercream.
- If buttercream appears to be on the soft side, mix in the remaining confectioners’ sugar 1/4 cup at a time until a thick but spreadable consistency is reached. If buttercream appears too thick, mix in remaining blood orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon at a time until the desired consistency (thick but spreadable) is reached.
- Increase mixer speed to medium high and mix blood orange buttercream for an additional 30-60 seconds. The resulting buttercream should be smooth and fluffy in appearance.
Assembly
- Level cooled cakes by cutting off dome tops with a cake leveler or serrated knife.
- Position first cake layer on serving platter of choice.
- Spoon half of the buttercream into the center of the cake and use an offset spatula to spread out buttercream into an even layer.
- Place second cake layer top side down over buttercream filling ensuring that the cake layers are evenly aligned and not lopsided. Spoon remaining buttercream on top of cake and smooth out into an even layer with an offset spatula.
- Adorn the top layer of cake with dried or candied blood orange slices and fresh herbs or flowers, optional before serving.
Notes
- Sliced cake layered with buttercream stored in an airtight container will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator and 1-3 months in the freezer. When ready to serve frozen cake slices, thaw out overnight in the refrigerator to restore soft texture.
- Blood orange olive oil cake may be baked as a single layer cake in an 8 or 9 inch round baking pan.
- Information about blood oranges was retrieved from this site.
- I used this guide to make dried blood orange slices.
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Tiffany C.
DELICIOUS! I made Winnie’s chocolate cherry cake last week and thought I’d give this one a go this week. Can’t wait to make another. Thank you Winnie for these amazing recipes!
nourished endeavors
Aww! Thank you so much for making my recipes. I’m happy that you enjoy them!