Chocolate Olive Oil Cake (gluten and dairy free)

La · Postby La » Tue Feb 05, 2013 9:39 am

This is a recipe from Nigella Lawson that popped up on my Twitter feed last week. I had been dreaming of this cake ever since, so I made it last night. :drool:

http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/CHO ... -CAKE-5551

Disclaimer: I actually modified the recipe a tad - it says you can use ground almonds (the gluten-free version) or flour. I couldn't decide which I wanted, so I used both! :lol:

(50g ground almonds, 100g flour). I also added some Chai spice powder because I like that flavour. The other change I made was to make it in muffin tins for individual cakelets rather than one large cake (partly for portion control on my part). Cooking them this way took about 18 minutes (and I could have gotten away with 16 minutes, I think). If your muffin tin is well greased, the cakelets will come out easily (I tried with cupcake liners and without to see the result each way). The recipe makes exactly 12 cakelets.

Note: The batter is quite runny, but don't let that worry you. It will set up just fine.

Verdict: Yum! The cakelets weren't as gooey/dense as I expected them to be, but still very good.

Tisha · Postby **Tisha** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 10:16 am

Mouth is watering! That sounds delish! Next time we have family over I know what we're having for dessert!

ratherawkward · Postby **ratherawkward** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 1:14 pm

Sounds great!! I have a few friends with gluten or dairy issues, so I foresee trying this.

DonnaRigs · Postby **DonnaRigs** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 4:40 pm

I wonder if I can substitute the sugar...

IronGoddess · Postby **IronGoddess** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:30 pm

I was wondering the same thing. How much honey??

QuickChick · Postby **QuickChick** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:30 pm

Yum! Thanks La!

La · Postby La » Tue Feb 05, 2013 10:18 pm

Running Goddess wrote:I was wondering the same thing. How much honey??

Likely not.

In a recipe like this, sugar isn't just for sweetness; it also hold the mixture together. Sometimes there aren't any substitutes for sugar.

kab · Postby **kab** » Tue Feb 05, 2013 10:26 pm

Thanks a lot, it sounds great. I'm going to go the cupcake route so that I can freeze them.

QuickChick · Postby **QuickChick** » Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:25 am

La wrote:
Running Goddess wrote:I was wondering the same thing. How much honey??

Likely not.

In a recipe like this, sugar isn't just for sweetness; it also hold the mixture together. Sometimes there aren't any substitutes for sugar.

I usually say that there is no substitute for sugar OR flour OR butter in a recipe, but this actually does look great!! The almonds would add a really nice flavour, and olive oil would still provide some richness. When I bake I say do it right or not at all! Good on Nigella for coming up with a recipe for food intolerances that still uses delicious ingredients (no stevia or potato/rice flour for example).

ETA... where do you find caster sugar? Her turkey brine recipe calls for that too, and I have never found it at Bulk Barn. I just got extra fine granulated sugar, but I'd guess for baking you'd want the real thing?

Jwolf · Postby **Jwolf** » Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:14 am

Isn't caster sugar the same thing as superfine baking sugar?

jgore · Postby **jgore** » Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:51 am

Jwolf wrote:Isn't caster sugar the same thing as superfine baking sugar?

I think so.

QuickChick · Postby **QuickChick** » Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:06 pm

Guess it's a British name thing then! The super fine granulated sugar is easy to find.

La · Postby La » Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:51 pm

I just used regular sugar. I thought that's what caster sugar was (the British name for regular sugar).

Samantha · Postby **Samantha** » Sat Feb 09, 2013 8:56 pm

Caster sugar is the British name for super fine sugar.

It dissolves more easily (especially in cold liquids). I've heard it called Berry Sugar in Canada as well but not sure if they still call it that.