Mini Lemon Olive Oil Cake
A lemon-kissed, incredibly moist, crispy-edged Mini Lemon Olive Oil Cake. Perfect for any occasion, this unfussy little cake can also be baked as a mini loaf or cupcakes!
The Olive Oil Cake in Mark Bittman’s How To Bake Everything Cookbook was the inspiration for this small batch recipe.
That original cake is easy to throw together (you don’t need a mixer) and features the deliciously sophisticated combination of citrus and olive oil. But alas it also makes about 16 servings.
So we did what we do and downsized it. Our much smaller cake is still incredibly simple and good, only now you won’t have a ton of leftovers!
Ingredient Notes
Olive Oil: An unrefined extra-virgin variety will give the cake an assertive grassy or floral olive oil flavor. Use a mild or light-tasting variety for a more subtle flavor.
Lots of Lemon: If you’re looking for an in-your-face amount of lemon, swap the vanilla extract for lemon extract, use a lemon-infused olive oil, and top the baked cake with a lemon glaze (see recipe notes).
How to Make a Small Lemon Olive Oil Cake
Step 1: Prep the pan. Generously grease the bottom and sides of a 6 x 2-inch round cake pan. Preheat oven or toaster oven to 350°F.
Step 2: Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt). Set aside.
Step 3: In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and sugar until fluffy and pale.
Step 4: Whisk in the olive oil, milk, vanilla, lemon zest, and juice. Then add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Step 5: Bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Step 6: Cool the cake in the pan for a bit. Then run a knife around the edges and invert onto a rack to cool completely.
Recipe Tips and Variations
- Try other citrus fruits: orange, grapefruit, lime, or clementine are all good options.
- Change up the texture: mix in a few tablespoons of chopped pistachios or unsweetened shredded coconut.
- Bake olive oil cupcakes: in just 13 minutes you’ll have 5 tender cupcakes to enjoy! Make sure to grease the muffin tin well or use liners as the cupcakes are prone to sticking.
- Make a tiny loaf: using a 5.75 x 3 x 2-inch mini loaf pan. Bake at 350F until a skewer in the middle comes out clean, our mini loaf took about 30 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
This cake is great on its own. But you can dress it up with a dusting of powdered sugar. Or serve alongside some small batch whipped cream and fresh berries.
For an extra special treat, whip up a tangy lemon glaze by whisking together ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar, ½ to 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract. Paired with the moist cake, the flavor reminds me of a Starbucks lemon loaf!
More Small Batch Baking Recipes
- Toaster Oven Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Blueberry Coffee Cake (Cake Mix Recipe)
- Banana Bread For Two
- Mini Applesauce Spice Cake
- Toaster Oven Carrot Cake
Mini Lemon Olive Oil Cake
Simple, moist, and flavorful, this little lemon olive oil cake is perfect for any occasion. Even better, the easy small-batch recipe can be baked as a mini loaf or cupcakes!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (60 grams) All Purpose Flour or White Whole Wheat Flour
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/8 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/8 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1 large Egg (about 50 grams, weighed without shell)
- 1/4 cup (48 grams) Granulated Sugar
- 1/4 cup (60 grams) Olive Oil, plus more for the pan
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) Milk (Dairy or Non-Dairy)
- 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest, from a small lemon
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) Lemon Juice
- 1/8 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or Lemon Extract (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. If using a toaster oven, adjust the cooking rack to the bottom position and select the BAKE setting.
- Generously grease the bottom and sides of a 6 x 2-inch round cake pan.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. - In a medium bowl, combine the egg and sugar, and whisk until fluffy and pale, about 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil, milk, vanilla, lemon zest, and juice. Stir in the flour mixture and mix just until combined and no flour lumps remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the edges are browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few small crumbs attached, about 20 to 25 minutes.
- Leave the cake to cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then run a knife or mini offset spatula around the edges and invert onto a rack to cool completely.
Notes
Cupcakes: Grease (or line) 5 cavities in a muffin pan, and distribute batter evenly. Bake at 350°F until the cupcakes are browned around the edges, spring back when gently pressed in the centers, and a toothpick comes out clean or with a few crumbs, about 12 to 15 minutes
Mini Loaf: Pour batter into a well-oiled mini loaf pan (5.75 x 3 x 2-inch). Bake at 350°F until a skewer in the middle comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
Convection Toaster Oven: Reduce temperature to 325°F and check for doneness earlier (about 2/3 of the way through the cooking time).
Quick Lemon Glaze: Whisk together ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar, ½ to 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract. Pour over the completely cooked cake, spread as needed, and let set for 20 to 30 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 Cake Slice (Untopped)Amount Per Serving: Calories: 243Total Fat: 15.6gSaturated Fat: 2.5gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 119mgCarbohydrates: 24.3gFiber: 0.5gSugar: 12.6gProtein: 3.4g
Greetings Tim and Brie! Thanks so much for diving into the wonderful world of ToasterOven Love for all of us who need and want small batch recipes that work! I haven’t used my full-size kitchen oven on over two years! We are a family of two so we really enjoy recipes for casseroles/tea loaves/cakes etc. just for us with no leftovers. Our oven has a convection setting too so any info on maximizing that feature would be helpful. Can it sub as an “air fryer” as well?
Hello, Vivian!
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and share about the recipes you enjoy. We have a few new mini cakes/loaves planned for this year so your comment has me very excited to get testing them 🙂
We do have convection resources that you might find helpful.
This one is a great place to start for the basics of making adjustments for your favorite recipes: https://toasterovenlove.com/7-things-you-should-know-about-convection-toaster-ovens/
In this article, we tried cooking air fryer recipes in our convection toaster oven and shared what worked and what didn’t. You can read it here: https://toasterovenlove.com/air-fry-convection-toaster-oven/
We definitely plan on doing more with the air-frying and convection this year as we know there is a lot of interest. And we are all for helping people figure out how to cook what they want without buying another appliance – especially if they don’t need to.
Happy New Year and best wishes for a delicious 2025!
~ Brie
My tower toaster oven dose not give or show how to set the heating for cakes or the air fry instructions
I’d never heard of a tower toaster oven before, had to do a quick Google.
This is the one I found, not sure if it’s the same one you have? If it is, there is not a convection feature on that toaster oven (not all of them have it) there is just a conventional “Bake” setting on the left knob.
There is a link to the “User’s Guide” on the page that gives specific instructions for using the bake setting. It looks like you are not able to adjust the temperature.
Unfortunately, the guide does not say what temperature the “Bake” setting is regulated too. You might want to give the manufacturer a call and see what assistance/info they can offer beyond the manual?
Update: Sorry I didn’t think of this sooner, the easiest way to find out the actual temperature is to toss an oven thermometer in there before preheating. Here’s our step-by-step guide explaining how to test your toaster oven’s temperature.
i love filled cupcakes! especially when the combination of flavors is so awesome. fantastic small batch!
This is a tech difficulty. I am unable to download into Paprika recipe app, either through the app download or by cutting and pasting from the website in Safari. Only one line at a time will highlight, which is way too cumbersome even for the best recipe.
Sorry you’re having trouble saving the recipe, Mary Ann. I’m not familiar with the Paprika app but I think I know the problem. This recipe was originally posted on Food Fanatic so the recipe card is hosted by them.
Try visiting this page https://www.foodfanatic.com/recipes/lemon-olive-oil-cupcakes-recipe/ and saving from there.
If you’re still having trouble shoot me an email and we’ll get you taken care of 🙂