Olive Oil Lemon Cake

Earl said he wanted this for his birthday cake so I made it. I thought it would be gross but it was actually very good and very moist! It’s a keeper!

Ingredients

1. 1 cup olive oil (not extra virgin)
2. 3 large eggs
3. 11/2 cups granulated sugar, plus 2 top for sprinkling the top
4. 2 tsp vanilla extract
5. 1/2 cup lemon juice
6. zest from 3 lemons
7. 1 tsp salt
8. 1/2 tsp baking powder
9. 1/2 tsp baking soda
10. 2 cups all purpose flour
11. 1 cup whole milk
12. powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a 9" pan by greasing the bottom and the sides well
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, eggs, and sugar.
3. Add the vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice. Whisk briefly to combine.
4. Sift together the salt, baking powder, baking soda, and flour. Alternating with the milk, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in a couple of batches.
   
5. Try not to over-mix at this stage, you just want to combine everything until no streaks of dry flour remain.
6. Pour the batter into the pan. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of granulated sugar evenly over the top.
7. Bake for 50-55 minutes. The cake should be risen and starting to turn a bit golden brown on the top. Note: ovens vary greatly and you may need to bake your cake longer to get it done in the center. I recommend laying a loose piece of foil over the top of your cake if yours seems to be getting very brown towards the end of cooking.
8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes in the pan. Then gently remove the cake from the pan and allow to cool completely on a baking rack.
9. When cool, dust the top with powdered sugar