Your Sitty's Favorite Palestinian Olive Oil Cake Recipe! 🍰 - PaliRoots

Your Sitty's Favorite Palestinian Olive Oil Cake Recipe! 🍰

Have you been seeing the Palestinian Olive Oil Cake on your social media? Have you tried to make it? Well, you MUST! This recipe will be one for the book to make for any kind of gathering. In Palestine, you can find olive oil trees cultivated all throughout the land, it is an unofficial symbol of Palestine. Typically, we use olive oil for savory recipes, so enjoy this very delicious Palestinian Olive Oil Cake your Sitty won't even be able to resist! Ps. pair it with some chai or Sitty's healing tea mix for the perfect complement to this desert! 🍵

✅  Ingredients You Need:

  • 3 large eggs 
  • 1 ¼ cups (83/4 ounces) plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 
  • ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil 
  • Zest of 1 orange
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice 
  • 1 tbsp fresh orange juice 
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract 
  • 1 ¾ cups (83/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tbsp ground cardamom spice 
  • 3/4 cup whole milk 
  • 1 tbsp butter 
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar 
  • Fresh rosemary (for garnish) 

✅  Instructions: 

Step 1: Before getting started on your batter, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch cake or springform pan with a tablespoon of unsalted butter to ensure the cake does not stick to the pan. 

Step 2: In a large bowl, combine and whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and ground cardroom.

Step 3: Using a whisk, whip 3 eggs until foamy, about 1 min. Then, add 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar, zest of 1 orange, zest of 1 lemon, 1 tbsp vanilla extract, 1 tbsp lemon juice, and 1 tbsp orange juice. Whip until fluffy yellow, for about 2 minutes.  

Step 4: Slowly drizzle in ¾ cup olive oil and mix until fully incorporated. 

Step 5: Add in half of the flour mixture to the wet mixture and mix until incorporated, then add in the remaining flour and mix. Next, pour in ¾ milk and mix until you have a smooth cake batter. 

Step 6: Transfer batter to the prepared cake pan, sprinkle 1 tbsp sugar over the entire surface. Bake for 40- 45 min until the cake has a deep golden-brown color. Use a knife or toothpick to insert into the cake to ensure the cake is fully cooked. If the toothpick or knife comes out clear, your cake is ready.  Once the cake is fully cooked, remove cake from pan and place on a wire rack and allow to cool for 20 min. 

Step 7:  Sprinkle an even layer of powdered sugar on top of the cake and place a piece of fresh rosemary in the center of the cake for garnish.  Cut into wedges and serve.


Sa7tein & Enjoy! 🍰

 

About the Author: Haneen Mustafa, half Black & half Palestinian, was born and raised in Amman, Jordan and later relocated to America with her family.  Haneen discovered her love for baking and cooking when she moved away from home for college and began finding inspiration in the kitchen to recreate some of her favorite meals her grandma and aunts used to spoil me with in the Middle East. 

Instagram: @Haneensm⁠