The Original Classic Olive Oil Chocolate Cake Recipe
A moist, frosted chocolate cake made with olive oil instead of ordinary vegetable oil. It tastes like classic chocolate birthday cake, with a softer crumb and a family story baked into it.
This is chocolate cake first, olive oil cake second.
The mistake people make with olive oil chocolate cake is making the olive oil the whole personality. This recipe does the opposite. It starts with the kind of chocolate cake people already love: cocoa, milk, vanilla, dark chocolate shavings, and frosting.
The olive oil gives the cake its identity, but the chocolate does the selling. That is why the family line matters: serve the cake first, tell people the secret ingredient later.
Classic Olive Oil Chocolate Cake
This is a frosted American-style chocolate cake made with olive oil in the batter. It is not a plain Italian-style olive oil cake. It is a homemade American-style chocolate cake with olive oil in the batter, rich frosting, and a memorable family twist. It is a homemade chocolate cake with better ingredients and a memorable twist.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter, for the pan
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups unbleached flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup organic whole milk
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup boiling water
- 2 cups shaved frozen dark chocolate, divided
Quick notes before baking
- Use mild olive oil if you want chocolate to stay in front.
- Freeze the dark chocolate before shaving it.
- The shaved frozen dark chocolate is divided: fold 1 cup into the batter and save the remaining 1 cup for after frosting.
- Cool the cake completely before frosting or the frosting will slide.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 13×9 glass baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, whisk sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and fine sea salt.
- In a separate bowl, mix eggs, organic whole milk, olive oil, and vanilla.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Scrape the bowl with a rubber or silicone spatula and mix until smooth.
- Carefully stir in 3/4 cup boiling water. The batter should loosen, but it should not feel watery.
- Fold 1 cup shaved frozen dark chocolate into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared glass dish.
- Bake about 35 minutes, until the center is set and a tester comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Let the cake cool completely.
- Frost with chocolaty chocolate frosting and finish with the remaining 1 cup shaved frozen dark chocolate.
Best olive oil
A mild olive oil keeps the cake familiar. Stronger extra-virgin olive oil can work, but it will bring a more noticeable fruity flavor.
Texture goal
The cake should be soft and moist, not dense like a brownie. The boiling water helps bloom the cocoa and loosen the batter.
Serving idea
Serve it with cold milk or coffee. It is rich enough for a celebration but simple enough to bake without a special occasion.
Make the frosting
The frosting is part of the identity of this cake. It keeps the recipe in classic American chocolate cake territory.
Read the story
The olive oil was not added as a trend. It came from how our family already cooked.. It came from how the family already cooked.
Common questions
Can you use olive oil instead of vegetable oil in chocolate cake?
Yes. Olive oil works well in chocolate cake, especially with cocoa and vanilla. This recipe was built around olive oil from the start, not converted later.
Can you taste the olive oil?
Usually, chocolate leads. A mild olive oil blends into the cake while cocoa, vanilla, milk, frosting, and shaved dark chocolate carry the flavor.
Is olive oil chocolate cake healthy?
It is still chocolate cake. The honest framing is that it is homemade and made with olive oil instead of shortening or ordinary vegetable oil. That sounds better and more believable than pretending cake is health food.
Why use 3/4 cup boiling water?
The old online recipe used 1 cup. The adjusted version uses 3/4 cup, which keeps the cake moist while making the batter a little richer and less loose.