Earworms and Cravings – Orange Scented Olive Oil Cornmeal Cake

Several weeks ago, out of nowhere, Bob Dylan’s song, “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again” got wedged in my head. I couldn’t get it out. On repeat, it played internally for weeks on end. Even though it’s a great song, this earworm got annoying, as they often do. It was especially frustrating because I don’t know all the lyrics, and some verses that I think I know I probably got wrong. As I mumbled the same verses internally and out loud, my wife Marci got irritated by the repetitiveness. I can’t say I blame her; I got aggravated as well.

I tried everything to expunge the song from my brain: listening to the song itself, all the way through; playing other artists’ versions with different tempos and intonations; listening to other catchy tunes to replace it; diverting my thoughts to reflections more complex. None of it worked. Eventually, I accepted it and slowly, over time, it vanished. (Although writing about it now is bringing it back.)

Around the same time that “Memphis Blues” got stuck in my head on a loop, I got a craving for an olive oil cornmeal cake. Unexpectedly, it was all I could think of. I have never made such a dessert before, and I’m not even sure I have tasted one, but the hankering for this cake was severe.

The cake I had in my mind was simple. Moist and chewy from the olive oil with a slight grittiness – in a good way – from cornmeal. No adornments or icing, it was a plain cake I desired, although a scoop of ice cream on the side would be a nice addition. Similar to cornbread, but sweeter and more cake-like. Not too different from poundcake, but round.

The dilemma with the cake, as with the song, was how to get it out of my head. The easiest path to take in this case was to make a dessert. I did some online research. There were lots of possibilities. Some were fancier than I wanted, with embedded fruit or glazes and icings. Some lacked the cornmeal, which I wanted for texture. Others leaned slightly savory, more like cornbread rather than cake. And then I found Melissa Clark’s New York Times recipe for The Most Adaptable One-Bowl Cornmeal Poundcake.

Since a baker I am not, primarily because I don’t like precise measurements, this recipe was ideal for me. It’s completely flexible. You can use the zest of an orange, lemon, or lime, or leave it out if that suits you. I used orange. It calls for any kind of liquid fat. Of course I chose olive oil. As for dairy, it’s wide open; yogurt, buttermilk, sour cream, or even whole milk with a splash of lemon juice. There’s a choice of vanilla or almond extract, or even brandy, but none are compulsory. And then I decided to add a pinch of cardamom in place of the optional nutmeg.

The result was a resounding success. Not at all dry, slightly dense, and subtly sweet and citrus scented. The cornmeal and flour ratio contributed to the perfect texture, exactly what I was after. It was plain but satisfying, the way a good poundcake should be. It was the kind of cake you could eat sliver after sliver until it’s practically gone, without it becoming too rich or cloying.

And the cake was a success in another way too. It satisfied my craving, relieving the desire from my brain. Now if I could only get that song out of my head.

Orange Scented Olive Oil Cornmeal Cake

I can take virtually no credit for this recipe, save the choices I made based on the options given in Melissa Clark’s recipe for The Most Adaptable One-Bowl Cornmeal Poundcake. The original recipe calls for a 9-inch loaf pan. But I wanted my cake round, and a 9-inch diameter round cake pan holds the same volume of liquid but results in a thinner cake. Therefore, it was necessary to decrease the cooking time to get the perfect crumb. It is important not to overcook the cake to ensure the proper moist consistency.

(I actually only have a 9½-inch round cake pan, so I just added a little more of each ingredient than called for in the recipe below to meet my needs. Luckily the recipe is forgiving enough to work with my off-the-cuff adjustments.)

50 minutes

butter and flour to grease and coat a 9-inch round pan

1 cup sugar

zest of 1 orange

½ cup olive oil (not extra virgin)

2 eggs

½ cup plain full fat yogurt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. ground cardamom

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

½ cup yellow cornmeal

1¼ cup all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 ^oF. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with butter and then coat with flour, discarding any extra.
2. In a large bowl add sugar and orange zest. Work the zest into the sugar with your fingers to infuse the sugar with citrus flavor.
3. Add the olive oil, eggs, yogurt, vanilla extract, and cardamom and stir until completely mixed in.
4. Whisk in salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cornmeal until fully combined, and once smooth, whisk in flour.
5. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the top is golden brown at the edges and the center springs back when lightly pressed, about 30 to 35 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.
6. Let the cake cool in the pan on a cooling rack. Cover with the cooling rack and flip the cake out of the pan. Flip again, right side up, onto a serving plate and enjoy.

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