St. Noah’s Olive Oil Cake

History

As you were reminded in our post about St. Noah, this Old Testament patriarch from Genesis spent forty days and forty nights in his ark as God flooded the earth. As the water lessened, Noah sent out a dove, and it returned back to him holding an olive branch—a sign of new life. Through the olive branch, Noah knew that the waters were subsiding and that he and his family would soon be able to leave the ark.

In this story, and other places in the Bible, olive trees are prominent symbols of hope and rebirth. In Deuteronomy 8:8, the Holy Land is described as a “land of olive oil.” Thus, olive trees and olive oil became an important feature of the life of the Israelites, evidenced in the multiple passages where they are mentioned in Scripture as critical for food, medicine, light, anointment, and wood, just to name a few uses.

Even in today’s world, we see olive trees as emblematic of the same themes that Noah appreciated in the branch brought back to him. We still have the expression, “extending an olive branch,” in our language as an expression of peace. Likewise, the olive branch is also featured on the seal of the United States of America, making connections between the early US colonies and the tribes of Israel.

Whether or not these connections are appropriate representations of the original meaning of the olive branch in Noah’s story, the importance of the symbolism of the olive branch cannot be understated. Its visibility in the story of Noah has been long studied and acknowledged.

Olive Oil Cake

In keeping with this theme, one of the ways in which St. Noah’s Day can be commemorated through festivity and feasting is making an olive oil cake that nods to the importance of this feature of Noah’s story. Like Noah’s family, who expressed their gratitude to God for providing for them through the flood (likely through eating and feasting upon their exit from the boat), we also use Noah’s day as an opportunity to meditate upon the salvation that the Lord has given us.

This olive oil cake is a tender, fragrant, and rich dessert perfect with an extra drizzle of olive oil and topped with jam, seasonal fruit, and/or powdered sugar. A fast and easy treat to whip up, it is the perfect dish to serve as part of your lowkey celebration of Noah and reflection upon his scriptural story. Serve it as part of afternoon tea or after dinner, or better yet pair it with an olive-oil-themed dinner alongside aglio e olio and a mediterranean-inspired salad!

Ingredients

1 cup olive oil

3 eggs

½ cup granulated sugar

¾ cup maple syrup

2 teaspoons vanilla

½ cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 cups all purpose flour

1 ½ cup milk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉.
2. Combine the olive oil, eggs, sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, and lemon juice in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda).
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and add the milk, whisking until combined. It will be a wet batter.
5. Transfer the batter into a greased bundt cake pan and bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Allow the cake to cool for 20 minutes before removing carefully from the pan and top with berries, powdered sugar, or frosting. Be especially careful when removing it so it doesn’t fall apart.