This Blueberry Olive Oil Cake is made with almond flour and corn flour and sweetened with honey. Gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free.
Last week we headed west to California. Our first stop, after a day wandering the streets of San Francisco, was Napa Valley where we met up with our friends Megan and Bryon to taste and see what Napa does best. This wine tasting trip has been in the works for the last year in honor of what Megan and I call our "25th best friendiversary". No one really needs an excuse to go wine tasting I suppose, but this felt like a worthy cause.
Next up, Heath and I drove halfway down the coast to San Luis Obispo to meet with my LA-living sister and her boyfriend, where we watched (much to Heath's dismay) the OKC Thunder lose to the Spurs in a friendly bar that made us all feel like locals. And later, some more wine tasting. Our third leg led us north and east away from the coast toward Yosemite National Park. Beautiful seems like such a minuscule word when trying to describe Yosemite. The fact that we have so many awe-inspiring places like this in the US is always so shocking to me. I could have spent days there.
Prior to our trip, I had done some research on gluten-free bakeries and other food related places of note for our expected destinations. In Napa, we checked out the Oxbow Public Market, full of wonderful organic food vendors, wine, and cafes. This felt like a gluten-free haven to me. One of the vendors, Cate & Co., is a gluten-free bakeshop and eatery where I had my first true breakfast sandwich in what felt like eons.
We went back the very next morning because I had been eyeing the blueberry olive oil cake from another vendor at the Oxbow, C Casa. It was well worth the trip back and since we returned home I have been trying to recreate it.


The blueberry olive oil cake from C Casa was moist, bursting with berries, perfectly sweet with a hint of cornmeal and lemon, and didn't last a second in the car on the way down to San Luis Obispo like originally planned. My version, made with almond flour and a little corn flour, is sweetened with honey. I am most certainly in the blueberry muffin lover camp and this cake falls right in line adding a little touch of decadence, making it suitable for dessert or breakfast.



Blueberry Olive Oil Cake (Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
- Olive oil for greasing pan; Coconut palm sugar to dust pan
- 2 cups almond flour firmly packed, plus 1 tablespoon
- ¼ cup corn flour
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- 1 cup blueberries rinsed and dried (if frozen, thawed and drained)
Optional toppings:
- Fresh blueberries
- Powdered sugar
- Coconut or regular whipped cream
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease sides and bottom of a 9x2 round cake pan with olive oil or coconut oil. Line bottom with parchment, greasing on top of parchment as well.
- In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups almond flour, corn flour, coconut sugar, baking soda, and salt. In a small bowl, whisk honey, milk, olive oil, vanilla extract, and eggs.
- Using an electric mixer or by hand, gradually add liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until lumps no longer appear. Add lemon zest. Stir to combine.
- Rinse out your small bowl, wipe dry. Add remaining tablespoon of almond flour and blueberries. Gently stir to coat. Fold blueberries into batter. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Place cake pan on the middle oven rack and bake for about 45-55 minutes, or until middle is set and a toothpick or fork come out clean. Cool cake on wire rack.
- When cool, use a knife to loosen cake from sides of pan. Invert cake over onto serving plate. Serve with fresh blueberries and sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Notes:
Inspired by C Casa's blueberry olive oil upside-down cake and adapted from fine Cooking.
Kerri
A friend of mine dropped off some blueberries last night, so I decided to try out this blueberry cake -- WOW!!! I think I could eat the entire thing right now (so left the kitchen). My husband and son had high praise as well (they often don't the GF items I've attempted, only giving the response, "It's warm..."). I bet this won't make it until dinner... Thank you! This is the first item I've made from your collection. I will be back!
I did use a lot more blueberries (maybe 2c total) and added some sliced almonds to the top. Wow again, thank you!
Tessa
Thanks so much, Kerri! I am so happy to hear that and I love the addition of almonds. I hope you find some other recipes you love here too! :)
Maricela
Hi! Can this recipe be done with a gluten free flour mix (Trader Joe's) instead of almond flour? If so, I am guessing the amount of flour would be different? If it is, do you know what the measurements would be or how I can figure that out? I appreciate your time!
Alissa @ Big Eats Tiny Kitchen
This was soooo good. I loved the cornmeal addition. Good job!
Tessa
Thanks, A! So glad you liked it!
Katie
Looks delicious! I want to hear more about the trip! I <3 California.
Tessa
Thanks, Katie! Oh, yes - I love California, too!! It was hard to leave.