Back with a vengance this week for the usual baking slot. As I’ve been getting into Vietnamese cooking recently makes me have an awful lot of surplus limes at the moment. That coupled with not wanting to go out to get butter (the weather has been dreadful), made me look for a new fat in my baking. A quick scan through some of the recipes I’d gathered as my life as a chef lead me to this cake (or a version of it). Enjoy.
Olive oil & Lime cake
- 4 Limes (zest of 4, juice of 3)
- 4 Large Eggs
- 120g Caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
- 200g Strong flour
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- 225g Extra virgin olive oil
- 100g Ground almonds
- Pinch of sea salt
Pre heat the oven to 180ºc, and line a baking tin with greaseproof paper (it’s the same size one I always use from IKEA).
Separate out the eggs, leaving the whites to one side for now.
Combine the yolks with ½ the sugar & beat until pale, then add the ground almonds, lime zest & ¼ of the oil.
Continue to beat, slowly & gradually add the remainder of the oil. The mix will look split, but don’t worry.
Olive oil & Lime cake: The mix looks split, but don’t worry.
Next add the flour gradually, until a thick paste is formed.
Add the lime juice to relax the mix a bit.
In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites to soft peaks before adding the remainder of the sugar in a steady stream (basically, making French meringue).
Olive oil & Lime cake: Meringue
Next, take ½ the meringue & beat into the almond/egg paste to loosen even further, when full incorporated, then fold in the remaining meringue gently.
Pour into the lined baking tin, sprinkle with caster sugar, & bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out cleanly.
Olive oil & Lime cake: Sprinkle with sugar before baking gives a great crust afterwards.
After cooking, remove from the oven & leave in the baking tin for an hour, before transferring to a cooling rack.
Olive oil & Lime cake: Straight out of the oven.