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Ottolenghi Apple Olive Oil Cake Recipe

Sliced apple cake with olive oil on a serving plate.
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5 from 6 reviews

This Ottolenghi apple and olive oil cake is a moist fall dessert loaded with apple chunks, flavored with cinnamon, and topped with a maple cream cheese icing. It is an easy two-layer cake made with extra-virgin olive oil and fresh apples.

Ingredients

Scale

For the cake:

  • 2.8 oz (80 g) sultana raisins
  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) water
  • 2 1/4 cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) olive oil
  • 1/2 cup + 1/2 tablespoon (160 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 whole eggs, room temperature
  • 2 egg whites, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 3 medium-sized Granny Smith apples

For the maple icing:

  • 3.5 oz (100 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) golden brown sugar 
  • 1/3 cup (85 ml) maple syrup
  • 7.7 oz (220 g) cream cheese, room temperature

* If needed, please refer to Baking Conversion Charts.

**Don't you have the correct baking pan on hand right now? Try this simple Cake Pan Converter!

 

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Butter an 8-inch (20 cm) springform pan and line its bottom and sides with parchment paper.
  2. Place the sultana raisins and water in a saucepan and simmer over low heat until the water is completely absorbed by the raisins. Set aside. Peel apples with a vegetable peeler, remove the cores and seeds, and cut into about 1/3-inch (1 cm) cubes.
  3. To make the cake, place olive oil, sugar, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until combined. Gradually add lightly beaten whole eggs, continuing to mix until the mixture becomes smooth. Then add apple cubes, sultana raisins, and grated lemon zest, and combine with a rubber spatula. Finally, add the sifted dry ingredients (flour, ground cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and baking soda) and mix.
  4. In a clean bowl, beat egg whites with a stand mixer or an electric mixer until soft peaks. Add it to the main preparation in two additions, then gently combine it with the spatula. Pour the batter into a cake pan, even the surface with a spoon, and bake for 90 minutes. Check the cake's readiness with a skewer: if it comes out dry, the cake is ready. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan.
  5. To make the maple icing, place softened butter, brown sugar, and maple syrup in a bowl and beat until smooth. Add cream cheese at room temperature and beat until the cream becomes homogeneous.
  6. To assemble the cake, remove the cold cake from the pan and cut it horizontally using a serrated knife. If the cake is domed after baking, cut the top to even the surface. Place the bottom of the cake on a serving platter and spread half of the maple icing. Place the top half of the cake on the cream layer and cover it with the remaining icing. Even the cake's surface can be smoothed with a bent spatula or by creating waves.

Notes

  1. Bring butter and cream cheese to room temperature about an hour before you start.
  2. Use an 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pan, buttered and lined with parchment and precut circle cake pan liners. A springform pan makes cake removal easier, but a regular cake pan works as well.
  3. Every oven is different: adjust your oven settings to 375°F, 190°C, 170°C fan, or gas mark 5.
  4. Use this simple cake pan converter to recalculate ingredient amounts for different cake pan sizes. Modify the baking time accordingly: for a 7-inch (18 cm) cake, decrease the baking time by 10 minutes; to make a 6-inch (15 cm) cake, reduce the baking time by 15 to 20 minutes.
  5. Make-ahead option: Bake the cake in advance, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for up to 1 week. Slice and assemble the cake with maple icing on the day of serving.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/apple-olive-oil-cake-yotam-ottolenghi/