This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
Take your baking skills up a notch with this Healthy Lemon Olive Oil Cake recipe. It’s simple and easy to make with an absolutely gourmet flavor!
The most delicious lemon olive oil cake recipe
Olive oil isn’t typically used in baking. Its flavor can be a bit strong, and it won’t be found in your average cookie or brownie recipe! But when it comes to lemon cake… olive oil is a must. Canola or vegetable simply won’t do!
This healthy lemon olive oil cake is one lemon dream of a dessert. It’s fluffy and perfectly flavorful and it’s filled with all of the best ingredients: honey, lemon zest, and a powdered sugar glaze.
It makes the perfect fancy-feeling dessert, but I won’t tell if you’re tempted to sneak a piece for breakfast! It’s just that good.
Ingredients in healthy lemon olive oil cake
This cake is made in two parts. The cake itself comes together with a flour base, and then we’ll finish off the recipe with a 2 or 3 (your choice) ingredient glaze.
Cake
- Almond flour: Start your cake with 2 1/4 cups of almond flour.
- Tapioca flour: Follow that with 1/2 cup of tapioca flour (a type of South American flour that works wonders in this cake). Alternatively, you can use equal parts arrowroot starch.
- Baking soda: To help the cake rise properly, include 1/2 tsp of baking soda.
- Salt: 1/4 tsp of salt will create the perfect flavor.
- Eggs: To help all of the dry ingredients bind together well, use 3 eggs.
- Honey: 1/2 cup of honey makes a delicious, subtly sweet addition.
- Olive oil: 1/3 cup of olive oil will create the correct cake texture.
- Lemon juice: Now, for the lemon! Include 1/4 cup of lemon juice.
- Lemon zest: Pair the juice with 2 tbsp of zest for extra flavor! You can use the same lemon for this.
- Vanilla: Last but not least, rout the cake with 1 tsp of vanilla.
Glaze
- Powdered sugar: First up for the lemon cake glaze is 1 cup of powdered sugar.
- Lemon juice: Pair the sugar with 2 tbsp of lemon juice!
- Optional: Finally, add additional lemon zest to the glaze for extra tangy flavor.
Tools needed to make this recipe
To make a healthy lemon cake, you will need 7 kitchen tools. I recommend grabbing them before you get started for the smoothest cooking process!
- 9-inch cake pan
- Parchment paper
- Medium mixing bowl
- Stirring utensil
- Large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Small mixing bowl
For measuring out ingredients, gather the following sized cups: 1/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp, 1 tsp, 1 tbsp, 1/4 cup, 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup, and 1 cup.
How to make healthy lemon olive oil cake
This lemon cake is made just like any other! We’ll start by preparing the batter with the dry and then wet ingredients, and then we’ll combine those and bake. Finish it all off with a simple 2 or 3 ingredient glaze!
To begin, preheat the oven to 350ยฐF and grease a 9-inch cake pan. I like to add a layer of parchment paper to the bottom.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix the almond flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, and salt.
Then, use a large mixing bowl to whisk together the eggs, honey, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla until well combined.
Add the flour mixture into the wet mixture in small increments, and stir until everything is well combined. Once fully mixed, pour the batter into the greased cake pan.
Bake for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted. Let cool.
Finally, make the glaze by whisking together the glaze ingredients. Let the cake cool, and then add the glaze!
Substitution Tip
Throughout this recipe, there are a few ingredients that can be substituted with other options.
Baking soda
If you find that you’re out of baking soda, baking powder could save the day. Simply replace the soda with 3 times the amount of powder. For this recipe, that will equal 1 and 1/2 tsp of powder.
Honey
Honey makes a fabulous all-natural sweetener, but not everyone loves it! If preferred, swap with maple syrup or molasses. Start with less than 1/2 cup and add to taste as needed.
Powdered sugar
If you don’t have powdered sugar, you can use regular sugar! Simply grind it up in a blender to turn the sugar crystals into powder. When you reach 1 cup of powder, you’ll be good to go!
Storing leftovers
If you want to save half (or even all) of your lemon cake for future enjoyment, feel free to freeze it! Simply wrap in foil or plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to eat, let thaw for a few hours and enjoy!
Alternatively, save leftovers for later this week by placing them in an airtight container or wrapping them in foil and storing them in the refrigerator. Enjoy within 5 days.
If you liked this recipe, you’ll want to try these!
Lemon can take any baked good up a notch. Here are some more ideas to try!
- Healthy Lemon Cookies (Gluten-Free)
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Lemon Poppy Seed Bread (Gluten-Free)
- Healthy Lemon Bars (Gluten-Free)
Recipe by Erin Morrissey and Photos by The Mindful Hapa
Healthy Lemon Olive Oil Cake
Take your baking skills up a notch with this Healthy Lemon Olive Oil Cake recipe. It’s simple and easy to make with an absolutely gourmet flavor!
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour or arrowroot starch
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp vanilla
Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- optional: lemon zest
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 9 inch cake pan. I also parchment line the bottom.
- In a medium bowl, mix together almond flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, honey, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla until well combined.
- Add flour mixture into wet in increments, and stir until well combined. Once fully mixed, pour into greased cake pan.
- Bake for 28-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool.
- Make glaze by whisking together glaze ingredients. Let cool completely before glazing.
There may be affiliate links in this post!ย By purchasing a product I recommend, I may receive a small compensation. However, I only recommend products I absolutely love and use myself. Thank you for supporting Erin Lives Whole, it helps keep this blog afloat ๐
Liz says
I love your recipes, but they are high in calories, sodium and sugars? Do you have any recipes that are lower in any of those or all of those?
Erin says
Hi Liz, I just a nutrition calculator for all my recipes and calories, sugar and sodium all vary, but you can feel free to make tweaks/changes as needed to fit your needs.
Diane O'Halloran says
Delicious!! I keep taking thin slices of it and can’t stop eating it. I will definitely make this again. I followed the recipe exactly and had no issues with anything.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Diane, so happy you loved it so much!! ๐
Ally H says
Hi Erin! Wondering if you can make this with oranges in stead of lemons?
Erin says
Hi Ally, Yes! Same amount and let me know how the orange olive oil cake comes out! ๐
Jill says
Have you made this into cupcakes? I would like to put some kind of frosting on each one that is dairy free – any recommendations
Stรฉphanie says
Amazing cake! One of my favorite lemon cake recipe, as it is not too sweet, and the end result is so moist, not dry at all! It is now part of our classics
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Stรฉphanie, so happy you loved it! ๐
Michelle says
How long should it bake and what temp
Erin says
Hi Michelle, the receipt calls for the cake to be baked at 350F for 28-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Here is the full recipe- https://www.erinliveswhole.com/healthy-lemon-olive-oil-cake/
toni says
Do you think this can be make without lemon? just olive oil cake
Erin says
Hi Toni, yep that should work! Let me know how it comes out!
Camille says
This cake is easy to make, moist, and full of lovely lemon flavor. Thanks for the recipe Erin!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Camille, so glad you enjoyed it!!
Gretel says
Off the charts good!
Would not change a thing!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Gretel, so glad you loved it!!
M says
Can I skip the glaze?
Erin says
Hi, yes of course!
Jules says
This is an easy great recipe, I added a bit of semolina bc I didn’t have enough almond flour. Kids will have it for breakfast.
Athens Greece
★★★★
Erin says
Hi Jules, so happy you loved it and made it your own!!
Caroline says
So so good!!! Made it for Easter and everyone loved it. Added blueberries and it was delicious!! Mine fell a little in the middle, I am making it again this week so I bought new baking soda to try again! Still so good even with a little dip.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Caroline, so happy it was a hit! ๐
Lucia says
Hi
It was wondering if we can substitute the eggs?
Erin says
Hi Lucia, so sorry but unfortunately, that won’t work.
Tricia says
hi
Can this be made with regular flour? I’m allergic to almonds but need a healthier heart recipe (low sodium etc) that this checks-off.
thanks,
Erin says
Hi Tricia, unfortunately, they aren’t an even exchange for each other and would require other ingredients to be changed as well. So sorry!
Esther Cowin says
I made it with regular flour and organic sugar and it was delicious!
Erin says
Hi Esther, thank you so much for sharing! ๐
Cindy says
Really great recipe!
Thanks for sharing.
Might need to do a double next time!
Everyone loved it in our family!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Cindy, so happy you all enjoyed it!!
Anna Petraki says
Hello from CHANIA, Crete, Greece๐ I made your fabulous cake last night and now I enjoying it for breakfastโฆ so healthy and deliciousโฆ I am gonna make it againโฆ thanks๐๐๐
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Anna, so happy you loved it! ๐
Chelsea Robinson says
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!!!! I bake a lot and know how difficult it can be to find good recipes, especially healthy ones, and this knocked it out of the ball park! So so simple! Had all ingredients on hand. I only had Keto Honey so used that and worked great, but Iโll try with regular honey next time ๐ Iโm going to make this over and over and over, itโs divine and exactly what I was craving.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Chelsea, so happy you loved the cake so much and made it your own!!
Jane says
This recipe is getting added to my (already long) list of awesome ELW recipes. My friends we skeptical of an olive oil cake but I knew you would not lead us astray. I love the texture of this cake, you would never know it is GF!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Jane, so happy you all loved it!! Thanks for sharing! ๐
Jannah says
I made this back in the summer & it was SO good, I’ve been looking for an excuse to make it again! My husband does not love lemon but he actually loved this cake as well! It’s the perfect sweetness to tartness ratio!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Jannah, so happy you both enjoyed it! ๐
Tali says
Hi! Has anyone tried baking in a bundt pan? Assume it would work, perhaps with shorter baking time?
Erin says
Hi Tali, it definitely will work! I’d take about 10 minutes off the baking time and just watch it! Let me know how it comes out!!
Don says
Question – regular olive oil, I assume, since it doesnโt say โextra virgin.โ Thanks in advance. Canโt wait to try this!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Don, either works! Let me know how your cake comes out!!