Lifestyle
Lemon Olive Oil Cake with Salted Honey Cream Frosting
This olive oil cake has a soft, lingering crumb that stays moist for days, while a generous measure of lemon zest and fresh juice keeps every bite lively. Crowning it is a salted honey cream that sits somewhere between a frosting and a cloud: airy, lightly sweet, and finished with just enough salt to keep things interesting. It's the sort of dessert that looks like you fussed, even though you didn't.
Why You'll Love This Cake
Olive oil does the quiet heavy lifting here. In place of butter, no softening, and no waiting. This is the reason the cake keeps its tender texture well past the first day. The flavor is balanced rather than sugary: granulated and brown sugar for warmth, lemon for brightness, and a pinch of salt to round it all out.
The frosting is just as forgiving. It's whipped cream rather than buttercream, sweetened with honey and seasoned with salt, so it comes together in minutes and feels light against the citrus. One pan, a handful of pantry staples, and a few simple steps.
Fifty Minutes of Steady Heat
An olive oil cake bakes for a full 50 minutes, and that's exactly the stretch where your oven shows its character. You're looking for a center that sets all the way through and a top that turns evenly golden—without the edges drying out before the middle catches up. That consistency comes down to an oven that holds its temperature and bakes evenly without drying the delicate edges.
It's the kind of steady, true-to-temperature performance ZLINE builds its wall ovens on—dependable results that make luxury something you taste rather than read on a label. Set your timer, trust the bake, and let the oven do the patient work.
Lemon Olive Oil Cake with Salted Honey Cream Frosting
prep time
bake time
cool time
30 mins
50 mins
1.5 to 2 hours
Serves
8-10
Ingredients
Lemon Olive Oil Cake
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 4 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
Salted Honey Cream Frosting
- 1 cup cold heavy cream
- 1/4 cup honey
- Salt, to taste
Expert Tips
Zest before you juice: It's far easier to grate the peel from a whole, firm lemon than a squeezed one.
Reach for an olive oil you genuinely like the taste of: A fruity, well-balanced extra-virgin olive oil adds character without turning bitter once baked.
This cake is even better on day two: As it rests, the crumb settles, and the lemon deepens, so it keeps beautifully covered in the refrigerator.
Instructions
Make the Cake
Preheat the oven to 350°F on the standard setting. Grease a 9-inch cake pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until smooth.
Add the milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract to the wet ingredients. Mix until fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until smooth, being careful not to overmix.
Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely before frosting.
Make the Salted Honey Cream Frosting
Add the cold heavy cream to a mixing bowl and beat with a hand mixer or stand mixer until it begins to thicken.
Add the honey in slowly and a pinch of salt.
Continue beating until the cream is light, fluffy, and holds soft peaks.
Taste and add more salt if desired. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Assemble
Once the cake has cooled completely, top it with the salted honey cream frosting. Decorate as desired with lemon zest, a drizzle of honey, edible flowers, or fresh herbs.
