When September rolls around, I drop berries and stone fruits like a hot potato and move right on over to apples and pears for fruit desserts.  I taught this cake last year and then proceeded to make it for the Jewish holidays and every time we had people over in the fall.  Then all my friends who ate it asked me for the recipe and I told them, “sorry, it’s exclusive to my online cooking class!”  Little did they know I tweaked an Ottolenghi recipe. LOL. This cake reminds me of a better version of the Silver Palate chunky apple walnut cake that I made 100 times when I was in college.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Cake can be made 2-3 days in advance
• It’s so apple-y!
• The ultimate fall cake, perfect for holidays and entertaining
• Freezes well
• No need for frosting, glaze or anything over-the-top!

Olive Oil Apple Spice Cake Ingredients

• Raisins: I prefer unsulphured raisins. 
• All-purpose flour: I know I rarely use all-purpose flour, but it helps keep this cake from getting too heavy.
• Buckwheat or Rye flour: have a nice earthy taste that provide an interesting flavor in baked goods and pancakes. You can use more whole wheat pastry if you don’t have either of these. 
• Whole wheat pastry flour: milled from white wheat berries, this is lighter than traditional “whole wheat flour” and less bitter. I love the earthiness whole grain flours provide.
• Cinnamon: apples and cinnamon are BFF’s!
• Nutmeg: I love a little nutmeg, but it can get overpowering, so I am conservative when I use it.
• Cloves or Allspice: a little goes a long way. That’s why I only use 1/8th teaspoon. 
• Baking soda: Standard Arm & Hammer baking soda reacts with the acidic ingredients to provide extra leavening.
• Baking powder: I prefer an aluminum-free baking powder to avoid a metallic taste in baked goods. Besides, it’s not like we need anymore aluminum in our diet. 
• Apples: now is the season even though you see apples year round at the market. I like Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Braeburn, Honeycrisp, or Fuji, but use what you like.  
• Sugar: I use a dry sweetener in this recipe. I recommend cane sugar because it dissolves well and is light colored. You can also use maple sugar (more expensive) or coconut sugar (will result in a darker cake). 
• Olive oil: is one of my go-to fats of choice in baked goods. Olive oil pairs well with fruit, vegetables, and chocolate.
• Eggs: I use 2 large eggs plus 2 large egg whites. 
• Vanilla extract: look for pure vanilla extract with no additives or artificial flavors. 
• Citrus zest: I like to use orange or lemon zest. 

How to Make Olive Oil Apple Spice Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F degrees. Lightly grease the base and sides of a 9-inch round springform pan with olive oil and line the bottom with unbleached parchment paper. Set aside. 
2. Place the raisins and 2/3 cup of the water in a medium saucepan. Simmer over low heat until the raisins are plump, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain any remaining water in the pan. Set aside.
3. Whisk the flours, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl. Peel and core the apples, then cut into 1-inch pieces and set aside in a separate bowl. The apples may start to oxidize if you do this in advance, but it’s ok because you won’t be able to tell when the cake bakes.
4. Place the sugar, olive oil, whole eggs, vanilla and orange zest in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for 4-5 minutes, until the mixture is light in color and has thickened a little. You don’t want to beat at such a high speed since it can create air bubbles. Remove the bowl from the machine and, using a large spatula, add the dry mix and gently fold to combine. Add the apples, raisins, and the remaining 1/3 cup water (or equivalent amount of calvados, if using) and stir to combine.
5. Place the egg whites in a clean bowl and whisk at high speed until soft peaks form. This will take a little longer if you’re using a stand mixer due to the small amount of egg whites. Gently fold in the egg whites into the batter, then transfer the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with a spatula and bake for 40 – 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven, allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes. Run a thin knife along the perimeter of the cake, unmold and transfer the cake to a cooling rack to cool completely.
6. Once cool, you can dust with a little powdered sugar, if desired.

Tips for Olive Oil Apple Spice Cake 

• Use room temperature ingredients, especially eggs. You may not realize it, but it makes a difference!
• Don’t use your peppery, artisanal $50 olive oil here. Just the one you use for daily cooking is fine.
• Use the apples you enjoy. I tend to prefer Granny Smith, Honeycrisp and Pink Lady in cakes.
• Use a toothpick or skewer to determine if the cake is done. Dry crumbs are ok. Sticky batter is not.
• If you don’t have a springform pan, use a 9-inch round with parchment lining the inside and coming up the top at least an inch.

Substitutions for Olive Oil Apple Spice Cake 

• Buckwheat or rye flour – use more whole wheat pastry flour 
• Wheat flours – use a good GF flour blend, like King Arthur or Bob’s Red Mill
• Ground cloves – allspice
• Cane sugar – maple sugar or coconut sugar
• Orange zest – lemon zest
• Raisins – diced dates or chopped walnuts

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Pamela Salzman (@pamelasalzman)

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