By My week with the kids. Pop was stable. The new meds were working. I drove the kids over Wednesday after school to see him. He sat in the recliner and Aiden showed him a school project about Detroit history (the auto industry, naturally) and Zaria climbed into Pop's lap and showed him her new front-tooth gap. She'd lost a tooth Monday. Pop touched the gap gently with one finger and said, "That's a good tooth gap, baby girl." Zaria beamed.
Thursday I cooked dinner with Zaria again. She wanted to make pancakes for dinner. I let her. She measured the flour. She cracked the egg. She stirred the batter. I poured them onto the griddle. She watched the bubbles form and called out "Now, Daddy!" when it was time to flip. She is going to be a cook. Possibly a better cook than me.
Friday I worked a catering side job. Saturday Aiden's game; we won 24-18. Aiden scored 10. After the game we celebrated with frozen custard at Stroh's.
Sunday at Mama's. She made spaghetti with meat sauce — which she only makes occasionally, because she considers spaghetti not really our food but the kids love it. Pop ate two helpings. The autumn light through the kitchen window made everything look gentle.
Sunday at Mama’s always ends too soon — two helpings of spaghetti, the kids full and sleepy, Pop looking more like himself than he had in weeks. I wanted to hold onto that feeling, that soft autumn-afternoon ease, and bring something to the next gathering that matched it. This Orange Olive Oil Cake is exactly that: bright without being showy, rich without being heavy, the kind of thing that fits right in at a table where the important stuff already happened before dessert.
Orange Olive Oil Cake
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 40 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup good-quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest (from about 2 navel oranges)
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)
- Thin orange slices, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with a little olive oil and line the bottom with parchment paper.
- Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until evenly combined.
- Mix wet ingredients. In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, milk, orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla extract until smooth and well blended.
- Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until just combined — a few small lumps are fine. Do not overmix.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 38–42 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn out and cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar and garnish with orange slices before serving if desired.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Carbs: 37g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 115mg