Moelleux aux fruits d'été (summer fruits)

This is simple cake with fruit. The word moelleux means a tender or moist cake. The recipe came from David Lebovitz. I had planned to make something else for the potluck I was attending but when I saw a picture of it on Facebook I changed my mind. I always trust recipes from David Lebovitz and I highly recommend following him.  Here is his substack: https://davidlebovitz.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips Not only did all of the moelleux disappear at the potluck, two people asked me for the recipe. When I get more than one immediate request for a recipe I know I need to add it to my blog. You can make this with any summer fruit such as apricots, nectarines, or plums. You could even use raspberries or cherries. I used peaches and served it with whipped cream.

Moelleux aux fruits d'été

1 1/2 lbs (680g) apricots or plums, or another summer fruit, see above. It took less peaches to cover to top of mine.

3/4 cup plus 2 tbs (100g) almond flour. You could use all purpose but the flavor would not be as good.

1/2 cup (65g) all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder, preferably aluminum-free

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup plus 2 tbs (230g) granulated sugar

5 ounces (140g) unsalted butter at room temperature

2 large eggs at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract, or 1/2 tsp almond extract. I used vanilla

1 1/2 tbs coarse granulated brown sugar, such as turbinado sugar (or granulated white sugar)

1. Cut the fruit into wedges and set it aside. Preheat the oven to 350º F. (180ºC). Grease well with butter a 9-inch (23cm) springform pan. If you don't have a springform pan you can use another cake pan but if you do, line it with parchment paper. It will be harder to get the cake out of the pan.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the almond flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. I used a whisk but D. Lebowitz prefers a silicone spatula.. Add the soft butter and mix it in with a spatula, a pastry cutter, or your fingers, until it's broken up into little pieces about the size of corn kernels. Stir in the eggs and vanilla until it is almost smooth. It's fine if there are small pieces of butter visible.

3. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Arrange the wedges of fruit on their sides in circles over the batter, placing them snugly against each other. Press them gently into the batter. Avoid putting them up against the sides of the pan because their juices will cause them to stick to the sides. The batter will rise as the moelleux bakes and the fruit will get closer to the sides. Keeping space between the fruit and the sides of the pan will make the cake easier to remove from the pan.

4. Sprinkle the coarse sugar over the top and bake until the center just feels set. A toothpick inserted into the center of the moelleux should come out free of crumbs stuck to it. D. Lebovitz said it should  take about 1 hour to bake the moelluex but I checked mine at 50 minutes and it was a tiny bit over baked. So I would start checking it at 45 minutes depending on your oven. When it is baked, place it on a cooling rack. If juices have bubbled up and stuck to the sides of the pan, run a knife around the outside of the cake to help it release later.

Note: If you want to make this gluten-free go with the almond flour version and use a gluten-free flour substitute in place of the all-purpose flour. If you want to reduce the sugar you could cut it by 6 tablespoons/75g and skip the sugar on top though D. Lebovitz wouldn't skip that.

Portuguese Orange Olive Oil Cake

                                                 Portuguese Orange Olive Oil Cake

This is not only a favorite cake of mine but it is also one that my friends have requested me to make for them and they also have asked for the recipe. You should wait a day to eat it but that means that it is a cake that keeps well. This recipe is based on one that can be found on the Leite's Culinaria website.

Ingredients 

butter and flour for prepping the pan

4 to 5 large organic navel oranges, because you are using the zest it is important that the oranges be organic 

3 cups granulated sugar 

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour 

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt

5 large eggs

1 1/2 cups mild, fruity extra-virgin olive oil 

confectioner sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and set the temperature to 350ºF (180ºC). Coat a 12-cup Bundt or tube pan with butter and sprinkle flour over it. Instead you could use nonstick baking spray with flour if you prefer. 

Finely grate the zest of 3 oranges into a medium bowl and rub it into the sugar with your fingers and set the bowl aside.

Squeeze the juice from 4 oranges. You should have 1 1/2 cups of juice. If you don't, squeeze the 5th orange until you have enough juice. 

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

Place the eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or use a handheld mixer in a large bowl. Beat the eggs on medium-high speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Slowly pour in the orange zest and sugar mixture and continue to beat until thick and pale yellow, about 3 minutes. 

Switch to low speed and alternate adding the flour mixture and the oil, starting and ending with the flour. Beat until just a few wisps of flour remain. Slowly drizzle in the orange juice with the mixer on its lowest setting to bring the batter together.

Gently  scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a cake tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it, about 1 1/4 hours. Check the cake from time to time and if the top begins to brow too much, cover it loosely it with foil.

When the cake is done place it on a wire rack and let it cool in the pan for 15 minutes, no longer. If the cake stays in the pan for too long a time the sugar will begin to cool too much and stick to the pan. I always set a timer so I don't forget to take the cake out of the pan after 15 minutes.  Turn the cake onto the wire rack and let it cool completely. Place the cake under a cover and let it sit overnight. This moist fruity cake only gets better with age. It will be even better the next day, though my husband doesn't agree with that. He can't resist eating a piece right away. Just before serving, dust the cake with confectioner's sugar.