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Olive oil cakes are always rich and decadent in flavour. These Orange Sage Cakes are subtly sweet and with hints of orange and cardamom. This cake is spongy and has a very nice crumb. For ease I like to make it in a large muffin pan but for a more uniform look try a mini loaf pan.

Fried sage makes for the perfect cherry on top of this cake. It’s pretty and crunchy while not obstructing the flavours with an overload of herbiness. You can never go wrong with a perfectly portioned piece of cake.

Batter With Sage and orange
Flour and seasoning
Batter in cake pan
Baked cakes

Ingredients:

  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 2 Tbsp orange zest
  • 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh sage
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cardamom (can also use cinnamon)

Orange Icing

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 Tbsp orange juice

Fried Sage Leaves

  • 8 – 10 fresh sage leaves
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup sugar

Orange Sage Cakes

Tips & Tricks:

  • Orange Icing Sugar Glaze: If you add too much orange juice to the icing and it is super runny thats okay just add more powdered sugar. The opposite goes for if the icing sugar is too thick just add more orange juice
  • Fired Sage Leaves: It should only take a few seconds before the leaves are fried in the hot oil. The should hopefully still retain their green colour. You can test if you oil is hot enough before hand by dipping the end of a wooden spoon into the oil. If it bubbles it is hot enough.
  • Alternative to a large muffin pan: You can use mini loaf pans or even bake it as a whole pan.
Orange Sage Cakes Cut

Other Desserts You Might Like:

Orange Sage Cakes

This recipe is based on the sage cakes that are in “Dance of Thieves” by Mary E. Pearson. I the book Kazi mentions to Jase that her favourite food is sage cakes and orange. He promptly hires 2 new cooks who specialize in making the cakes just for her.

Orange Sage Cakes
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Orange Sage Cakes

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Course: DessertDifficulty: Medium
Cook Mode

Keep the screen of your device on

Servings

4

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

40

minutes
Calories

555

kcal
Total time

1

hour 

15

minutes

Orange Sage Cakes are sweet, rich and sure to impress any guests. Inspired by “Dance of Thieves” written by Mary E. Pearson.

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs

  • 1/2 cup sugar

  • 1/2 cup honey

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

  • 1/4 cup orange juice

  • 2 Tbsp orange zest

  • 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh sage

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 Tbsp baking powder

  • 1/2 tsp salt

  • 1/2 tsp cardamom (can also use cinnamon)

  • Orange Icing

  • 1 cup powdered sugar

  • 2 Tbsp orange juice

  • Fried Sage Leaves

  • 8 -10 fresh sage leaves

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil

  • 1/4 cup sugar

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350ºF.
  • Grease your large muffin pan or mini loaf pans.
  • In a large stand mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar and honey for 2 minutes, until colour lightens and mixture is fluffy. With the mixer running on low, drizzle in the olive oil and orange juice slowly. Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the orange zest and chopped sage leaves.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cardamom. Pour the dry mixture into the wet in the stand mixer and slowly blend until smooth. (to avoid mess you can do this in 2 additions) Don’t overmix.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tin. If you are using 4 small loaf pans, pour around 3/4 cup of batter into each pan.
  • Bake the cake for 18-24 minutes, until the cake is cooked through and the top is golden brown. Set the cake aside for 15 minutes in the pan then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Orange Icing
  • In a mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and orange juice. If you want your icing thicker, add more powdered sugar. If you want it thinner, add more orange juice. When the cake has cooled down, drizzle with the icing and set aside until the icing has set. This will take about a half hour too harden.
  • Fried Sage Leaves
  • While the icing is setting on the cake, heat the oil in a saucepan then carefully add the sage leaves, 3-4 at a time, to the pan. Fry the sage leaves for 10-15 seconds then remove from the oil and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Sprinkle the fried leaves with sugar on both sides and set aside to cool. Once cooled down, place a few leaves on top of the cake for garnish.
  • Note about the sage: in order for the leaves to stay crunchy, fry them right before serving because they will soften on the cake.

Notes

  • Nutrition Facts: Serving Size: 1, Calories 555, Total Fat 25.1g (32% Daily Value), Saturated Fat 4.4g (22% Daily Value), Cholesterol 94mg (31% Daily Value), Sodium 206mg (9% Daily Value), Carbohydrate 81.7g (30% Daily Value), Dietary Fiber 1.2g (4% Daily Value), Sugars 59.1g, Protein 6.1g

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