If you’ve been following me on instagram these past couple of weeks, you’d know I’m currently in the midst of the chaos that is moving house, which means I have not had as much time as I usually do for cooking, baking, blogging or creating of any sorts. Big fat boooo!
I honestly cannot wait to get this all done and over with and settle into our new place (which has GAS COOKING!! Happy dance!!!), so I can get back into the swing of things. I’m quite miserable when I’m not creating, and I find that the less I do, the less I feel motivated to do. In other words, I’m experiencing a bit of a slump.
I did, however, make this cake just before we were notified that we have to move, and I reaaally wanted to share the recipe with you on here before fig season is over, so I am taking a break from packing to put together this quick post. It is a recipe by the ever brilliant Ottolenghi, and as always, it is quite excellent.
This is another one of those rustic, laid-back, unpretentious yet delicious cakes that I often tend to gravitate towards; they’re my favourite type of cake, as you can see here, here and here.
The cake is kept moist with ground almonds and yoghurt, and adorned with plenty of gorgeous sliced figs, the gems of all fruit. The fig wedges soften and become almost jammy when baked, and sink ever so slightly into the golden batter, giving it such a beautiful appearance! I love serving this with thick yoghurt or Labneh, and it works equally well as breakfast or afternoon tea.
I barely changed anything in the original recipe, except for scaling down the quantity of the batter by a third for a smaller cake and reducing the sugar just a tad. I also replaced the star anise with a pinch of cinnamon, just because I didn’t have any on hand and couldn’t be bothered to buy some just for this. Otherwise, I think it’s quite perfect the way it is! That Ottolenghi is pure genius.
Ottolenghi’s Fig & Almond Cake
Ingredients
- 130 g butter at room temperature
- 100 g sugar
- 2 eggs
- ½ tbsp vanilla extract
- 120 g almond meal or flour (ground almonds)*
- 65 g plain flour
- 1 tbsp salt
- ⅓ tbsp ground cinnamon
- 65 g greek yoghurt
- about 5-6 figs, quartered vertically into wedges
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200C (390F). Grease the bottom and sides of a 20cm (8”) loose-based springform cake pan generously with butter and dust with flour, set aside.
- In a bowl, beat the butter and the sugar with an electric mixer until light and pale and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each egg till fully incorporated. Add the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together almond meal, plain flour, salt and cinnamon. Add this to the bowl with the egg mixture and beat until just incorporated. Add the yoghurt and mix until smooth. Do not overmix!
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top. Arrange the fig slices on top of the batter in a circle, only very slightly immersed in the batter. Bake the cake in the oven for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 170C (340F) and continue baking for a further 35-40 minutes, until the cake is set and a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool for at least 15-20 minutes before taking it out of the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature with thick greek yoghurt or Labneh, maybe a few extra slices of fresh figs, or just plain as it is. Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
My name is Noha.
I’m passionate about food, an avid traveler, and I love to explore new cultures and cuisines whenever I get the chance by sharing my recipes and experiences with my readers.
A big fan of exploring different cuisines and always looking for new and exciting flavors to explore. I’m especially interested in healthy eating and finding ways to make delicious dishes without sacrificing nutrition.
