Reader Recipe: Lavender Vanilla Olive Oil Cake With Almonds
Faithful Al Dente reader Scott Cooley from Fort Collins Colorado sent me this recipe after reading about my lavender honey gelato endeavor. Scott's EVOO (cooks' speak for extra-virgin olive oil) cake is based on a Giada DeLaurentiis recipe, which he says is his go-to recipe for dessert, adding it "doesn't fail on me." For serving Scott dusts the cake with powdered sugar and serves with fresh berries or berry compote. We all need a trusty standby that we can rely on in a pinch. Since Scott and I were in culinary school together, I know he is a perfectionist. If he says it's good, I know it's a keeper. File this in your recipe boxes, pronto.
Lavender Vanilla Olive Oil Cake With Almonds
1½ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon culinary lavender, chopped
2/3 cup toasted almonds, coarsely crushed
3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
⅔ cup EVOO
¼ cup whole milk
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees-F. Lightly oil an 8-inch-diameter cake pan.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together. Mix in the almonds and lavender. Set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Whisk in olive oil slowly. Whisk in milk. Add flour mixture, and incorporate completely.
4. Bake for 45 minutes. Cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
Recipe credit: Scott Cooley
Image credit: missginsu.com
Do you have a tried and true recipe that's always the hit of the party? E-mail it to me at pomodorista@gmail.com. I'll share the best contributions with our readers.
--StellaCadente*
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Leslie Kelly on June 07, 2010 at 06:49 PM
This sounds terrific!
Can't wait to try it.... thanks for sharing Scott and Stella!!
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Jimi on June 08, 2010 at 06:02 AM
Oh, I have to try this! I've had a lavender lemon bundt that I really enjoyed, and this sounds even more intriguing, speaking as a long-time vanilla fanatic.
G. Kravitz on June 08, 2010 at 11:37 AM
The recipe does not state what type of baking pan to use, nor if it needs greasing. It would also be helpful to provide a list of retailers who sell culinary lavender.
StellaCadente* on June 09, 2010 at 08:04 PM
@ G. Kravitz: Good points, all. I have revised the recipe above. Amazon sells culinary lavender (see link above)...Lightly grease an 8-inch pan. Thanks for the feedback!
G. Kravitz on June 14, 2010 at 12:55 PM
Thank you for the updated directions. I did bake this cake, before the revisions were posted. I used a non-stick cheesecake pan, lined with parchment paper (baking time took exactly 30 minutes). It does taste good, but isn't memorable enough to justify the cost of EV olive oil, almonds and dried lavender. I am glad to have tried it, however. I have one other observation, if you don't mind, which may help those who prepare the recipe: Step 3 refers to whisking until "smooth and creamy." When making a cake, that description makes me think of a light and fluffy butter/sugar mixture. In this case, it is more like a thin-ish mayonnaise. As the cake uses olive oil instead of butter, the consistency makes sense. It just surprised me at first.
Disfuncion on August 04, 2010 at 11:52 AM
Thanks for recipe - just needed.
wartrol review on August 02, 2011 at 10:36 PM
Thanks for the great recipe. I've been looking around for this type of cake and am very glad I found it here.
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provillus on January 13, 2012 at 02:12 PM
I would like to bake that cake in my home, what's your special suggestion or precaution for me ?
wartrol on February 05, 2012 at 04:44 AM
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zetaclear on February 05, 2012 at 08:19 PM
wow that's pretty yummy cake, I loved to try that cake recipe, thanks for sharing with us step by step.
phen375 on February 06, 2012 at 08:52 PM
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thyromine on February 28, 2012 at 04:07 PM
I want to eat this yummy cake, is it possible for ?