This cake is cloud like light, soft and moist. Great on its own with a cup of tea or coffee but also wonderful served as dessert with a quick compote and Greek yogurt or Chantilly cream or ice cream.
Ingredients
- 165ml mild flavoured extra virgin olive oil
- 200g caster sugar plus 1 tbsp for sprinkling
- 125 soft bake and cake flour and a little extra for the cake tin
- 3 eggs
- 65g pistachios, powdered in a spice grinder
- 2 vanilla pods or 2 tbsp vanilla paste
- ½ lemon juice and zest
- ½ tsp baking powder
- A pinch of salt
Method
Preheat oven to 160C. Grease a springform baking tin 25cm diameter and dust with a little flour.
In a bowl, sift the flour with the baking powder.
In a bowl, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of the salt. At the soft peak stage, add 75g of the sugar in stages until the meringue is glossy and holds its shape.
In another clean bowl, beat the remaining sugar with the egg yolks, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest until pale and fluffy and add the flour little by little whilst whisking. Next add the extra virgin olive oil in a thin stream while whisking until it is fully incorporated. Next, using a spatula, mix in the ground pistachio nuts and last the meringue in three thirds. The first one you can whisk so as to lighten the cake mix but the next two additions need to be folded in carefully so as not to knock the air out of the cake mix.
Transfer the cake mix to the cake tin and bake until golden and a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake. Leave to cool and sprinkle with the sugar before serving.