The Mercury News

OMG! YUMMY’S OLIVE OIL MARBLE POUND CAKE

- — From “The Essential Jewish Baking Cookbook” by Beth Lee (Rockridge Press, $17)

Serves 6 to 8

INGREDIENT­S

Nonstick cooking spray

3 tablespoon­s unsweetene­d cocoa powder 3 tablespoon­s plus 1 cup granulated sugar, divided

2 tablespoon­s water

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting pan

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup olive oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs, room temperatur­e

½ cup unsweetene­d almond milk, room temperatur­e

DIRECTIONS

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray an 8½-by-4½-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and dust it with flour. (If you are using a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, reduce the baking time by 5 minutes.)

In a medium bowl, stir together the cocoa powder, 3 tablespoon­s sugar and the water to form a thick paste. Set aside.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the remaining 1 cup sugar, the oil and vanilla for 2 to 3 minutes on medium-high speed. Add the eggs one at a time, and beat for 1 minute on medium-high speed after each addition.

Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture and almond milk, starting and ending with the dry mixture and alternatin­g between the two, until fully combined.

Remove about 1 cup batter and stir it into the bowl with the cocoa-powder paste

mixture.

Spoon each batter in the prepared loaf pan in alternatin­g layers. Once all the batter is in the pan, take a knife or toothpick and zigzag it down the pan, making about 6 strokes to “marbleize” the loaf. Don’t overdo it, or you’ll have a homogenous cake.

Bake the loaf for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the pan cook on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and continue to cool to room temperatur­e.

 ?? PHOTO BY LAURA BASHAR ?? Who says the oil commemmora­ting Hanukkah needs to be fried? Beth Lee’s marble pound cake, made with half a cup of olive oil, works too.
PHOTO BY LAURA BASHAR Who says the oil commemmora­ting Hanukkah needs to be fried? Beth Lee’s marble pound cake, made with half a cup of olive oil, works too.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States