This week there were two desserts on Serious Eats I bookmarked to try — first, this maple cake with brown butter apples and this olive oil cake with tangerine marmalade. I took it as a sign from the universe that just because it’s only half way into January, there’s no reason I shouldn’t have dessert. And the olive oil cake is practically heart-healthy, on account of the olive oil and all. It’s literally a single layer olive oil cake soaked with tangerine marmalade. And if you saw the Clementine-Ginger marmalade I made last weekend, well, it was kismet, or serendipity, or maybe just plain timely.
I’ll just tell you, clementines and olive oil cake are M-F-E-O (you saw Sleepless in Seattle, right? Made For Each Other). The cake browned on both sides, and while you could lop off the crust, I didn’t think the appearance was much improved by doing that. Since we weren’t eating the whole thing immediately, I opted to slice it and dress it with the marmalade, which soaked into the cake, resulting in a ridiculously luxurious sweetness that amplified the olive oil.
One way or another, I think you’ve got to make the marmalade. Commercial marmalade may be too thick, even if you warm it. And truthfully, I think this would also be amazing with blood orange marmalade and might produce a color closer to the original photo on Serious Eats. And if you have a mind to, why not gild the lily with a little softly whipped cream.
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I love olive oil cakes, they are so moist and fruity. This looks lovely.