Olive oil cake

It may seem counter-intuitive to bake a cake using an ingredient so firmly associated with savoury dishes, but olive oil cake is an everyday classic that feels distinctly Italian. It’s a delicious alternative to butter-based cakes and has a rather grown-up flavour profile, but this will change dramatically depending on the type of olive oil that you use. It goes without saying that you should use the best-quality olive oil you can get, but grassy, peppery oils don’t lend themselves very well to this cake. Look for one that has floral, herby or fruity notes instead.

SERVES 8 PREP 20 mins COOK 1 hr EASY V

320ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for the tin 300g caster sugar

4 large eggs

½ tsp fine salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

250ml whole milk

1 lemon, zested and juiced 1 orange, zested and juiced 2 tsp baking powder 350g ‘00’ flour mascarpone, to serve

1 Lightly oil a 24cm cake tin and line the base with baking parchment. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.

2 Put the sugar, eggs, salt and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl and beat until pale and fluffy. Using a wooden spoon, slowly stir in the olive oil, milk, lemon juice and orange juice. Add the two zests. In a separate bowl, mix the baking powder into the flour, and when combined, fold into the olive oil mixture until smooth.

3 Pour the cake mixture into the tin and put in the oven for about 45 mins, until the top feels springy, a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle and the cake is golden brown.

4 Cool on a wire rack and serve warm, generous slices with a sweet wine, ice cream or mascarpone, or enjoy cold the next day with coffee.

PER SLICE 739 kcals • fat 47g • saturates 7g • carbs 74g • sugars 40g • fibre 2g • protein 10g • salt 0.8g