Almond Cake with Figs, Orange and Honey
Shaya said, "This is one of my favorite Passover desserts because it is so moist and fun to eat. Like the bakeries in the Venetian Jewish ghettos, it uses olive oil to moisten instead of butter, so it remains pareve, appropriate for a meat meal or a dairy meal."
Serves 10
Ingredients:
| 2 tablespoons matzo meal |
| 2 cups almond flour (or finely ground almonds) |
| 3/4 cup sugar |
| 1/4 cup brown sugar |
| 6 wholes eggs, whites and yolks separated |
| 6 tablespoons pure olive oil |
| 2 tablespoons orange juice |
| 1 tablespoon lemon juice |
| 2 tablespoons orange zest |
| 1/2 teaspoon salt |
| Honey Syrup |
| Nut Topping |
| Fig Marmellata |
Directions:
Brush the inside of a 10-inch Bundt pan with olive oil and then dust the inside with matzo meal.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, combine matzo meal, almond flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine egg yolks and another 1/4 cup granulated sugar; beat with a whip attachment until thick and fluffy, about 6 minutes. Drizzle in the olive oil. Once that is combined, add juices and zest.
Fold dry ingredients into the egg-yolk mixture.
In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites and salt to soft peaks. Slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and keep beating until stiff peaks form.
Fold the whipped egg whites into the egg yolk mixture. It should be a thick batter. Spoon into the prepared pan halfway up the sides.
Bake 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
When the cake comes out of the oven, brush it with honey syrup (from recipe) and then sprinkle the nut mixture (from recipe) all over the top. When cool, fill center with room temperature Fig Marmellata (from recipe).
