Campari Olive Oil Cake Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Campari

by: Melissa Clark

April18,2021

4.3

14 Ratings

  • Prep time 30 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour
  • Serves 8

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Author Notes

When I posted a photo of this very modest-looking cake on Instagram, I was blown away by the response. Honestly, it didn’t look like much—a generic yellow cake with a golden top. I think just the very notion of putting Campari and olive oil in a cake is what made people stop and “like” it. And it is a pretty terrific flavor combination—the citrusy bittersweet character of the Campari goes really well with the fragrant olive oil, to which I also add melted butter for richness as well as lots of fresh citrus juice and zest. The flavors are both fresh and intense, with a fluffy, moist crumb. On its own it’s a pretty plain-looking thing, but you can dress it up for a party, adding orange segments, berries, and dollops of whipped cream or crème fraîche to the top. Or if you want to go one step further, simmer some Campari and a bit of sugar down to a syrup, and drizzle that all over the cake. It makes it pretty, pinker, and accentuates the boozy flavor of the cake.

Reprinted from Dinner in French. Copyright © 2020 by Melissa Clark. Photographs copyright © 2020 by Laura Edwards. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC. —Melissa Clark

  • Test Kitchen-Approved

What You'll Need

Ingredients
  • 4 tablespoons(1/2 stick / 56 grams) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
  • 2 cups(260 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 1 2/3 cups(335 grams) sugar
  • 1 teaspoonfine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoonbaking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoonbaking soda
  • 2/3 cup(150 milliliters) whole milk
  • 2/3 cup(150 milliliters) mild olive oil
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/3 cup(80 milliliters) Campari
  • 1 tablespoongrated grapefruit zest
  • 1 tablespoongrated orange zest
  • 1 teaspoongrated lemon zest
  • 1/4 cup(60 milliliters) fresh grapefruit juice
  • 2 tablespoons(30 milliliters) fresh orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon(15 milliliters) fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cupwhipped crème fraîche or whipped cream, sweetened or not as you like, for serving
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9-inch springform pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. (You can use a regular 9-inch cake pan that is at least 2 inches deep, but the cake will be harder to unmold.)
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, butter, eggs, Campari, citrus zests, and citrus juices. Fold in the dry ingredients, then scrape the batter into the prepared pan.
  3. Bake until the top is golden and springs back when lightly pressed in the center, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (A cake tester might emerge with a few crumbs, which is okay.)
  4. Let the cake cool completely in the pan. Then run a butter knife around the edges and release the sides. Serve with dollops of whipped crème fraîche. (This cake is best served on the same day that it’s baked.)

Tags:

  • Cake
  • American
  • French
  • Campari
  • Grapefruit
  • Dessert

See what other Food52ers are saying.

Recipe by: Melissa Clark

Melissa Clark writes about cuisine and other products of appetite. After brief forays working as a cook in a restaurant kitchen, and as a caterer out of her fifth floor walk-up, Clark decided upon a more sedentary path. She earned an M.F.A. in writing from Columbia University, and began a freelance food writing career. Currently, she is a food columnist for the New York Times, and has written for Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Every Day with Rachel Ray, and Martha Stewart, amongst others. All told, Clark has written over 30 cookbooks.Clark was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, where she now lives with her husband, Daniel Gercke, their preschool daughter Dahlia, and their formerly cosseted cat.

Popular on Food52

15 Reviews

Elizabeth T. March 26, 2023

I make this all the time as we love Campari. It is perfect and so light. I love to serve it with unsweetened whipped cream with flecks of citrus zest. This is a perfect dessert and so easy to make.

Jenny January 13, 2022

The cake turned out wonderfully moist and aromatic. I reduced the sugar to 170 grams and found it to be enough, but I have to say that the amount of flour in grams did render the batter very soupy and liquidy, so I measured out the amount in cups and weighed it and then added the difference (320 grams in total), which made the batter more normal, although still loose. The problem is also that when you start adding flour to a lot of liquid, it easily forms clumps, so in the end I had to use an electric whisk to try and get rid of the lumps. Adjustments I would make would be to reduce the amount of Campari to 1/4 cup to cut away some of the bitterness, and use more orange juice than grapefruit juice, and potentially also some more lemon juice. Other than that, a wonderful cake! Would make again with these adjustments! :)

Krispyecca January 12, 2022

I really wanted to like this cake more than I did, because citrus and Campari is such a great flavor combo. But I just didn't. The cake is heavy, took forever to bake, and tasted mostly of olive oil to me. It's not bad but not great either. This recipe was worth a try but I won't be making it again.

Franca December 1, 2021

I made these in a muffin tin to serve as individual desserts. I reduced the sugar to 200 grams, and may reduce the amount of fat next time. It came across a little greasy. That being said, I loved the bitterness of the campari and citrus zests that came through. An all around lovely cake.

Oleg K. July 31, 2020

Wonderful. Added more lemon zest, could still use more, will try with a bit less sugar, and more lemon. But it's a delicious cake, had it with a co*cktail with Lillet and organic tonic. Great for a summer's afternoon. Thank you. 🙏

Jess June 20, 2020

I'm more partial to Aperol than Campari - I may try that version, without the grapefruit zest (upping the lemon and orange zests)

iolanthe April 30, 2020

I halved the recipe, using one egg and making up a little extra liquid with the orange juice. I liked the flavor (olive oil, citrus, herbal aftertaste) but found the cake far too oily, and I'm not sure that a second egg would fix this. In the future I will try just adding Campari to a reliable olive oil cake recipe.

iolanthe May 1, 2020

Since I cannot edit comments, I feel the need to add that the above comment is totally wrong! I had misread the amount of butter, thus ruining the texture of the cake (not that it stopped us from eating it).

andrea S. April 17, 2020

I made it exactly as written, other than using a 9" cake pan rather than springform. Since we're only serving it to ourselves (thanks Corona pandemic), plating it didn't matter. It had great flavor and was a nice balance of sweet + bitter. It came out of the lightly buttered cake pan just fine. A sprinkle of powdered sugar worked to serve it for breakfast. (the Americano followed later in the day)

Tamara April 12, 2020

The unique aftertaste of the citrus dazzles. A perfect Easter cake!

Tamara April 12, 2020

The unique aftertaste of the citrus dazzles. A perfect Easter cake.

Chesnok April 10, 2020

In her version in the NY times it calls for ½ teaspoon baking soda - this version calls for 1 teaspoon. I'm assuming the 1 tsp must be a typo?

Brinda A. April 11, 2020

Yes, apologies! Thank you for pointing this out; it's been fixed above.

Marty L. April 4, 2020

Made this in a regular 9 inch cake pan...Divided the recipe in half...skipped the parchment and butter. Simply brushed the pan with olive oil and “dusted” the pan with sugar.
Perfect thin slices with a crispy crust.

trish April 14, 2020

I'd like to try this as well, did you use 1 or 2 eggs? Thanks!

Campari Olive Oil Cake Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Why is my olive oil cake so dense? ›

Olive oil tends to make the cake a bit more dense, so adding whipped egg whites will lighten things up to create a beautiful texture.

Does olive oil make cake taste better? ›

Yes, it's true! Extra virgin olive oil is a great substitute for butter or other fats when baking cakes. It gives cakes a wonderfully moist texture and a light, subtle flavor that pairs perfectly with other ingredients like fresh fruit and nuts. Plus, it's healthy and packed with antioxidants and healthy fats.

Why did my olive oil cake sink? ›

Why did my cake sink in the middle?
  • 1 – Your ratio of ingredients is incorrect. ...
  • 2 – Your cake tin is too small. ...
  • 3 – You're undermixing your cake batter. ...
  • 4 – You're overmixing your cake batter. ...
  • 5 – You're opening the oven door too early when checking your cake. ...
  • 6 – Your oven is too cold.
Apr 28, 2023

What kind of olive oil do you use for olive oil cake? ›

If you want the benefits of an olive oil cake but don't want any noticeable flavor added from the olive oil, use olive oils that have a mild intensity like a Spanish Arbequina or Greek Koroneiki.

Where do the Kardashians get olive oil cake? ›

Through word-of-mouth, Little House Confections started getting their name out there. Big things didn't really start happening until her friend Simone Harouche, a popular interior designer and stylist friend of Kim Kardashian's, bought a cake for Kim.

What makes a cake more moist, oil or butter? ›

USE VEGETABLE OIL

Replacing butter with vegetable oil in your cake recipes typically yields moist results. Unlike butter, vegetable oil remains liquid at room temperature, ensuring your cake maintains a soft texture, whether served fresh or straight from the refrigerator.

What makes a cake fluffier butter or oil? ›

Oil cakes tend to bake up loftier with a more even crumb and stay moist and tender far longer than cakes made with butter. So why do most cake recipes start with butter? Flavor. Cakes made with butter often taste better than oil cakes.

What can I add to make my cake more dense? ›

On their own, boxed cake mixes have a structure that's loose and airy. But if you add ¼ cup flour or half a box of instant pudding mix, the texture of the cake becomes denser and tighter, ideal for a pound-cake-like consistency that will hold the shape of a Bundt pan.

Is olive oil cake healthier than regular cake? ›

Are olive oil cakes healthier? Yes, because you are replacing the butter with olive oil which makes it healthier. The monounsaturated fat in olive oil can improve heart health, while the natural polyphenols found in extra virgin olive oil provide many proven health benefits.

How long is olive oil cake good for? ›

Kosterina cake will stay fresh at room temperature for up to 4 days, after which time it should be refrigerated - the cake will remain fresh in the refrigerator for another 5-7 days. Cakes can also be frozen and enjoyed, once thawed, for up to 3 weeks.

What happens if you put olive oil in cake mix? ›

In these recipes, the swap would be a one-to-one ratio. In other words, if the recipe calls for one cup of vegetable oil, you would simply use one cup of extra virgin olive oil. Imagine how the smooth, delicious flavor of gourmet olive oil will enhance the flavor of a chocolate or a carrot cake!

Should olive oil cake be refrigerated? ›

Your olive oil cake will keep well for 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature. If frosted, it needs to be kept refrigerated. Let the cake cool fully before storing.

Should I store olive oil cake in the fridge? ›

If cake is consumed within the first 3-4 days, it does not need to be refrigerated, but should be kept at room temperature and covered. If you plan to serve our cake up to a week out, you should keep it covered and in the refrigerator until then.

Can you still eat a cake that has sunk? ›

If your cake was cooked to the proper temperature, chances are it is still edible even if it sunk in the center. Check that it's baked through the middle, then try a small piece of your cake. It might not taste good if the ingredient measurements were off. Notice the texture to make sure it's not too dense or spongy.

What oil does Kylie use? ›

"Almond oil or olive oil or jojoba oil," she tells Kardashian of her preferred oils, admitting that, like so many of us, she used to mispronounce jojoba.

Can you use regular olive oil in olive oil cake? ›

Best Olive Oils for Baking

Any olive oil is fine, but we find the best olive oil for baking is made with Aberquina olives ($19, Target). This type of olive oil will come labeled as "mild" olive oil, which allows for a light, mild flavor rather than the more aromatic extra virgin olive oil on the shelves.

Is it OK to bake a cake with olive oil? ›

Baking a cake with olive oil might seem like an estranged concept, but we highly recommend it. Olive oil leaves your cake sponge incredibly delicate, moist, and spongy and removes the chance of the sponge being heavy or dense.

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