Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x4 loaf pan with parchment paper. Grease any of the remaining exposed sides of the pan with butter flavored crisco.
In a large mixing bowl, add the zest of 1 blood orange and cane sugar. Use an electric hand mixer to combine until zest is thoroughly incorporated and sugar is tinted orange.
Add the olive oil and continue mixing with an electric hand mixer until the sugar absorbs all of the oil.
Beat in the eggs one at a time ensuring that the egg is fully incorporated before adding in the next. Then add in almond extract.
Pour in baking powder, salt, and approximately ¼ of flour. Beat together until smooth throughout.
In alternating fashion, add parts of the flour and milk. Beat in 3 additional increments until all of the flour and milk are added. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl and fold batter together.
Lastly, add the blood orange juice into the batter. Mix for another 10-15 seconds with a mixer until combined. Note: this will not be enough to tint the bread pink. If you’re looking for that, add 1-2 drops of pink food coloring.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and place in the oven. Immediately, reduce the heat of the oven to 300°F (why do this? It allows our bread to rise more and slowly bake the insides at the same time).
Bake for 1 hour and 5 minutes. Note: oven times may vary and need to adjust +/- 10-15 minutes. The loaf is finished when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Allow the bread to cool to room temperature before adding the glaze.
To make the glaze, combine powdered sugar, melted butter, and juice/zest of blood orange and optional ½ tsp orange extract. Use an electric hand mixer to combine glaze together. It will be thick. Add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time until glaze is spreadable.
Remove the cake from the pan and place on a wire rack. Pour the glaze over top of the loaf. For easy cleaning, I like to place a piece of parchment under the rack because inevitably some of the glaze will drip down.
Let the glaze harden, slice and enjoy!