Olive Oil Cake

This cake is perfect, and will ruin you for all others. Recipe from Maialino Restaurant in New York City. Maialino also serves it at breakfast in muffin form, and they've been known to turn it into a birthday cake, layered with mascarpone buttercream.

Makes a 9-inch round cake

Ingredients

• 2 cups (480 ml) all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5 ml) kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) baking powder
• 1 1/3 cups (320 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) whole milk
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons (20 ml) grated orange zest
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh orange juice
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) Grand Marnier

Note: Several quantities above are missing their units in the original source (e.g. salt, baking soda/powder, olive oil, milk, zest, juice, Grand Marnier). They are preserved exactly as published and flagged for correction rather than guessed.

Method

1. Heat the oven to 350° F (175°C). Oil, butter, or spray a 9-inch (23 cm) cake pan that is at least 2 inches (5 cm) deep with cooking spray, and line the bottom with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and powder. In another bowl, whisk the olive oil, milk, eggs, orange zest and juice, and Grand Marnier.
3. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until just combined.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, until the top is golden and a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and let cool for 30 minutes.
5. Run a knife around the edge of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack, and let cool completely, 2 hours.