Citrus Olive Oil Cake

This olive oil cake is one of the easiest cakes you will ever make. It has a gorgeous crackling crust from a sugar syrup, and a tender inside from the rich oil used in place of butter. Use whatever citrus you can get your hands on, blood oranges would be superb, as would grapefruit for a summery change.

Citrus Olive Oil Cake

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

2 large eggs

½ cup (118ml) mild extra virgin olive oil

1/3 cup (80g) plain Greek yoghurt

1 Tbsp (15ml) lemon juice

3 Tbsp (50ml) orange juice

1 Tsp each orange and lemon zest

1 ½ cups (150g) granulated sugar

¾ cup (105g) flour

½ cup (55g) almond flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

Glaze:

¼ - ½ cup orange juice

¼ - ½ cup granulated sugar

Sliced citrus fruit, optional

Yoghurt or crème fraiche to serve

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 325F/170C. Grease and line an 8” springform tin with parchment paper on the bottom and sides.

2. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, yoghurt, orange and lemon juice, zest and sugar until well combined.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and baking soda until there are no clumps.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until there are no dry bits remaining. Use a spatula to scrape the mixture into the prepared tin. Bake for 35-45 minutes to an hour, until a skewer comes out clean.

5. While the cake is baking, put your juice and sugar into a small pan over low heat. Boil until the mixture has thickened to a syrup, about 4-8 minutes. Remove to a small bowl and cover until ready to use.

6. When the cake is done, brush half the syrup all over the warm cake. Transfer to a rack and allow to cool before removing from the tin.

7. If you choose to make the candied citrus, leave half the syrup in the pan. Add the sliced citrus fruit and cook for a further 5 minutes until sticky and sweet. Garnish with the fruit slices and serve with a dollop of yoghurt or crème fraiche.