This post is sponsored by Carapelli Olive Oil, but as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Buuck Farms Bakery Possible.
If you’ve never had an olive oil cake before, you are missing out my friend. This one is super easy to make – hello one bowl recipe! It is flavored with vanilla and lemon, and is topped with a lemon mascarpone buttercream and fresh berries. The olive oil gives the cake such a nice and unexpected depth of flavor and keeps the cake layers so moist and tender. I also swirled in some lemon curd between the layers for an extra kick of lemon.
How to Make Lemon Olive Oil Cake
Make the Cake Layers
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and spray 3 8″ round cake pans with a nonstick spray that contains flour, like Baker’s Joy. Grab a large mixing bowl, and whisk the sugar, olive oil, eggs, and egg whites until well combined and pale in color – about 2-3 minutes.
It is super important when making olive oil cakes that you use a high quality olive oil. That’s why I reached for Carapelli when I was testing this recipe. It has such great flavor and has been my go-to olive oil for years now. Extra props for the pour spout that comes on their bottles that actually allows you to have control while you drizzle it.
Next, whisk in the buttermilk, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest until well combined. Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir until it’s mostly combined, but a few small clumps of flour is fine and better than over mixing! The batter should be light and thin and have several air bubbles throughout.
Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10-15 minutes, then flip out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Wrap cake layers in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator while you prepare the buttercream.
Make the Lemon Mascarpone Buttercream
In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the mascarpone and butter for 10 minutes, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl every couple of minutes. Add the salt, vanilla, and lemon extract and mix to combine.
Add the powdered sugar 1/2 at a time, mixing for 3 minutes on low after each addition. Be sure to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed. If you don’t scrape the bowl down occasionally, a thin layer of the butter/mascarpone won’t get mixed in and will result in a buttercream that doesn’t have an even smooth texture.
with the mixer running on low, pour in the heavy cream 2 TBSP at a time until you reach your desired consistency. You want the buttercream to be easily spreadable, but still hold its shape. For this recipe, I ended up using 6 TBSP of buttercream, but that can vary depending on the butter and mascarpone that you use.
Frost and Serve the Cake
Stack the cake layers on a cake board or cake plate. Place a small amount of buttercream on the board, then lay the first layer. Add about 1 C of the buttercream and use an offset spatula to spread it into an even layer. If you are adding the lemon curd, dollop a few TBSP on top and swirl it into the buttercream. Add the second layer and repeat. Once all three layers are stacked, apply a thin crumb coat to the outside of the cake. Smooth the sides using a cake comb, then chill for 30 minutes.
Once the crumb coat is set, apply a final smooth coat of the buttercream to the cake. Smooth it using a cake comb. You can leave the top edges raw like I did, or smooth them out with an offset spatula. Top the cake with fresh raspberries, lemon slices, and fresh florals. Slice and serve.
Lemon Olive Oil Cake
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Cook Time: 25 min
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8” 3 Layer Cake 1x
Description
Moist and tender one bowl lemon olive oil cake with lemon mascarpone buttercream and fresh berries.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 ½ C (325g) Granulated Sugar
- 1 C + 2 TBSP (195g) Carapelli Olive Oil
- 3 Lg Eggs + 2 Egg Whites, at room temperature
- 2 ¼ C (285g) All Purpose Flour
- 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 ½ C (360g) Buttermilk
- ½ C Fresh Lemon Juice
- Zest of 2 Lemons
- 1 ½ tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
For the Lemon Mascarpone Buttercream Frosting
- 4 oz Mascarpone, at room temperature
- 1 ½ C (3 Sticks) Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Lemon Extract
- 6 C Powdered Sugar, sifted
- 4–6 TBSP Heavy Cream, at room temperature
- Jarred Lemon Curd, optional
- 1 Pint Raspberries to top the cake with
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and spray 3 8” cake pans with a nonstick spray that contains flour, like Baker’s Joy.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the sugar, olive oil, eggs, and egg whites until smooth and pale in color, about 2-3 minutes.
- Whisk in the buttermilk, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir until the flour is mostly incorporated. A few small clumps of flour is okay. The batter should be thin, light, and have several air bubbles.
- Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached.
- Let cakes cool for 10-15 minutes in the pans, then flip out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling. Wrap cakes in plastic and chill in the fridge while you make the buttercream.
For the Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the mascarpone and the butter for 10 minutes, scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl several times in the process.
- Add the salt, vanilla, and lemon extract. Mix to combine.
- Add the sifted powdered sugar ½ at a time, mixing on low for 3 minutes after each addition. Make sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the heavy cream 2 TBSP at a time until you reach your desired consistency. You want the buttercream to be easily spreadable, but still hold its shape. I added 6 TBSP for this recipe, but you could need more or less depending on the butter and mascarpone you use!
Assembly
- Apply a thin crumb coat to the chilled cake. Add about 1 C of the buttercream between the cake layers. Optional – swirl the lemon curd into the buttercream in between the layers of cake.
- Chill the crumb coat for 30 minutes, then apply a final smooth coat of buttercream.
- Top cake with fresh raspberries, lemon slices, and fresh florals.
- Slice and enjoy.
Notes
- Uncut cake will keep in the fridge up to 5 days.
- To freeze: Slice cake and wrap individual slices in plastic and aluminum foil. Slices will keep in the freezer up to 3 months.
Keywords: olive oil cake, lemon olive oil cake, olive oil layer cake, mascarpone frosting
If you loved this recipe for Lemon Olive Oil Cake, be sure to check out some of my other cake recipes like this Dark Chocolate Valentine’s Day Cake, or this Classic Vanilla Birthday Cake.
Leave a Reply