Kim Boyce's Olive Oil Cake

Here's a little story for you. One day, years ago, I read an article in the Los Angeles Times about a pastry chef named Kim Boyce who was learning how to bake muffins with whole-grain flours so she could feed her two little girls snacks that were delicious and healthy at once. Sounds sort of familiar, doesn't it? Except the recipes included were anything but familiar. Kamut muffins made with Cotswold cheese, or oat flour muffins studded with apples, these muffins sounded...spectacular. I made a batch of whole-wheat muffins with yielding pockets of roasted sweet potatoes and mooned over the whole batch.

A few years later, sitting at my desk at the company where I edited cookbooks, an agent sent me a proposal for a book. Written by Kim Boyce. But instead of a book of muffins, I found a proposal for a book stuffed with dozens and dozens and dozens of recipes, for cakes, breads, pie doughs, and more, all made with different kinds of whole-grain flours, all bound together by Kim's brilliant philosophy: that whole-grain flours shouldn't just be eaten for their nutritional value, but rather for the subtle and delicious flavors each one had, especially when combined intelligently with flavorings like ripe apricots, dark chocolate, damp Muscovado sugar, rhubarb-hibiscus compote or fresh herbs.

Like I said. Brilliant. It took me one read through Kim's proposal to know that I had to publish her book. And also bake every single thing she mentioned.

So yes, this isn't an impartial post. This post is about as biased as you're going to get. But trust me when I tell you this book is a marvel. I don't know how to pick which recipe is worth the price of the book, because each one is.

Chewy, pliant flatbreads made with amaranth flour, sprinkled with herbs and griddled on a cast-iron pan? We ate them coming off the stove, fingers hot and oily. They were gone in minutes.

Oatmeal cookies, palm-sized and iced with Jackson Pollockian drizzles, made with a mix of flours like barley, oat, millet and rye. Just as chewy and perfect as the ones you get at the convenience store. Except, you know, better.

From graham crackers made with teff flour to chocolate babka made with Kamut flour to flaky rye pie dough to homemade cereal uncannily resembling Grape-Nuts, made with graham flour and buttermilk, everything in this book is wonderful. Delicious. Interesting. A classic. Things I'll be making and baking until I'm old and gray, I know it.

The point is not that you're remaking classic recipes as healthy alternatives, but rather that Kim's desserts are stand-alone gems in their own right. You'll find yourself craving her whole-wheat chocolate chip cookies because they taste better, full-flavored and rich, than others you've made before, not because they're made with whole-wheat flour. You're also learning that whole-grain flours have subtle flavors to be teased out.

Did you know that corn flour shines when paired with bright, fruity notes? Or that oat flour has a milky flavor best paired with chocolate or butter? Amaranth is grassy and meant to be mixed with musky sugars like Muscovado. Buckwheat is faintly bitter and needs fall fruits to show off its complex character. Kim put an enormous amount of work into this book - every page is filled with information. I learned so much working on this book and cooking from it.

My most recent discovery from its pages is this humble-sounding Olive Oil Cake. Ho-hum, you might say. Haven't we been here before? It's probably citrus-flavored, you think, and a little boring. Okay, so listen to this. First of all, it uses a combination of spelt flour and all-purpose flour. Just so that the cake has a little character, a sturdy little crumb, appealingly speckled. Then, you add chopped dark chocolate and minced fresh rosemary.

I know. I did not think I would ever be a fan of rosemary in cake. I like it on my potatoes just fine, but in my desserts? Nah, no thanks.

Silly me. If anyone was going to make the combination not only seem right, but essential, it'd be Kim. I don't know how she figured this out, but the fruity olive oil, the dark funk of the chocolate and the herbal, aggressive rosemary combine in the heat of the oven to produce the most astonishing thing: a simple tea cake that tastes complex and deep and delicious, with a flavor that is very, very difficult to put your figure on. It tastes so bewitchingly good, you will find yourself thinking about the cake the day after you make it, and the day after that as well, trying to find excuses to bake another round of it. Pretty wonderful.

Do you ever pick up a book and just sort of feel like you were meant to be holding it, that if you could be kindred spirits with an object, that book would be it? That's how I feel about Good to the Grain. I clutch it to my chest periodically, find myself poring over the pages, the rich colors and photos, getting hungry with each passing page. Yes, if books could be kindred spirits, this one would be mine. Its author already is.

Olive Oil Cake
Serves 8

Kim's note: You don't need to use a specialty olive oil for this cake. But if you have one with a lot of flavor, the cake will be that much better.

Olive oil for the pan
3/4 cup spelt flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 eggs
1 cup olive oil
3/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70% cacao), chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C.). Rub a 9 1/2-inch fluted tart pan with olive oil.

2. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, pouring any bits of grain or other ingredients left in the sifter back into the bowl. Set aside.

3. In another large bowl, whisk the eggs thoroughly. Add the olive oil, milk and rosemary and whisk again. Using a spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry, gently mixing just until combined. Stir in the chocolate. Pour the batter into the pan, spreading it evenly and smoothing the top.

4. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the top is domed, golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. The cake can be eaten warm or cool from the pan, or cooled, wrapped tightly in plastic, and kept for 2 days.

Comments

[Sasa]

Like your new photo, very pretty! This book also sounds great, I have a lot of whole grain flours from various projects and though I avoid buying cookbooks for fear of how much it will eventually cost me to lug them from Austria to NZ when I eventually move back, this one looks irresistible. Do you think they sell it in the German speaking countries? I guess I could also get it online but I like to look at things before I buy them, a bit old fashioned like that, me...

[thecatskillkiwi]

Wowza! I love me an olive oil cake, will definitely try this one and probably a multitude of her recipes... book sold!

[The Rowdy Chowgirl]

Wow! Rosemary and olive oil in a cake sounds so perfect to my non-sweet tooth! One more reason I just have to get this book.

[Charlotte]

I can't believe it... I ordered the book! :) Thank you!

[FOODESSA]

Thank you for highlighting a new book creator/ author to my attention. Sounds wonderful...I will certainly look into it.
The olive oil in cakes is nothing new to me since my 'Nonna' made most of her cakes with that simple aromatic oil. Myself...well, I'll have to re-incorporate back into my baking;o)
Thanks for sharing and flavourful wishes, Claudia

[littleclove]

Luisa,
WOW, I never bake but your post has gotten me all excited to start doing it. Especially the flat breads that you ate right out of the oven. I'm practically drooling over these right now, all from your writing alone!
Thanks for the post. I think I need this book!

[Luisa]

Mag - thank you for the tip!! We went there yesterday and I was bowled over. They sell literally every flour needed for use with this book and if it's not in the store, you can order it. Amazing. And those prices! I can't wait to take a class there; have you done that? Can you recommend?

Sasa - thank you! I don't think the book is for sale in bookstores in Germany, but I don't know for sure. I suppose it's possible that a specialty cookbook store might have a copy on hand. Online is your best bet!

[Sasa]

@Rach Not sure but I do know that a lot of health food stores keep the grains whole so they don't go rancid so fast but will grind them as you need them - if you see whole spelt, maybe ask?

[radiogourmet.wordpress.com]

So where do I get a hold of kosher salt here in Germany? I so want to make this cake, and soon, but am not sure how to substitute regular salt, or fleur de sel, for kosher salt.

[stacey snacks]

I make a rosemary olive oil cake weekly, but yes, I put lemon in it.
It is my "go to" cake and it is moist and delicious!
Now, chocolate and rosemary is odd, but I will try it!

[Luisa]

Radiogourmet - Italian grocery stores sell "sale grosso", which is coarse-grain salt. You can use that instead of kosher salt, or you can use about half the amount of regular table salt (don't use fleur de sel, it's far too precious and fancy and fine-grained, just use that for sprinkling). Enjoy!

[Rachel]

Rach: Spelt flour's available at Waitrose and also in Holland & Barrett and independent health food shops. Just look for the Dove Farm bags.

[Tracy]

Luisa, thanks. I made a trip to Whole Foods and found a huge display for Bob's Red Mill. Now I have no excuses. :)

[Ana Sofia]

Thank you for the suggestions. I'm a runner and love to bake so I'm always looking for whole grain suggestions. Will definitely try the olive oil cake as well!

[Kasey]

Luisa,
I want to make this cake, but would like to use regular and white whole wheat flour, and top it with a chocolate ganache. Think the adaptation would work well? I know it kills the idea of having it be more grain-y...Appreciate your thoughts!

[Liz]

Sounds great. I'm curious what to use if a person cannot have regular milk - perhaps almond milk would do? I'm very curious how this would taste with olive oil - I always heard not to use flavorful olive oil in cakes - but I guess it depends on what kind of cake!

[Luisa]

Kasey - It's kind of hard for me to tell you if it would work, you'll just have to try it! If you're using a chocolate icing on top instead of having chocolate in the cake, I think it'd be a shame - you need the chocolate bits to balance the rosemary in the crumb.

Liz - why don't you try using almond milk? I don't know how the substitution would affect the cake, you'll just have to try. As for the olive oil in the cake, trust me, it's delicious.

[Kasey]

Hi Luisa, Thanks so much for weighing in! Don't worry, I'm not planning on cutting back the chocolate in the cake, just adding the icing :) I'm giving it a go tonight. Wish me luck!

[Katrin]

I got the book and I love it. One thing I don´t get though. For example in this recipe, there´s no whole grain flour, right? Or does she want us to use whole grain spelt flour? As it comes in both varieties (at least in Austria) I´m quite confused. What did you use, Luisa? Thanks!

[Luisa]

Kasey - good luck! How did it turn out?

Katrin - In Austria and Germany, spelt flour comes both whole-grain and finely milled. For this recipe, you should use the whole-grain flour (as I did). In the States, all those "specialty" flours are whole-grain.

[Katrin]

Aah, that explains a lot. Thank you Luisa!

[Shannon]

I know you're way beyond this -- but thanks for this recipe! My family loved it. You konw it's good when the adults appreciate the complexity and the 8-year-old wakes up every day and asks if there is more cake for breakfast. I loved the subtlety of the rosemary, spelt, and olive oil. I've ordered the book from the public library . . . .

[Katrin]

Luisa, one more question - do you know of any good substitute for the whole grain pastry flour that is used in the book but is not available in Germany/Austria? Do you just use whole wheat flour? Thanks!

[Rachel]

Wow, this is my first visit to your wonderful site (I found you via a link from the FBC 2010 Event which I am excited to be attending)
Your work is fantastic, great writing, and photography...such inspiration!
I have just added the Whole Grain cookbook to my Amazon Wish List!
In the meantime, I will be trying out the Olive Oil cake to keep me happy until the actual book arrives on my doorstep. thanks, Rachel

[Luisa]

Shannon - so glad you all liked i!

Katrin - I'm so sorry I'm just answering now! There is no good substitute, unfortunately. What I'd suggest you do is use 405 flour for a quarter or a third of the amount called for and then make up the rest with (SIFTED!) Vollkornmehl. You might need to add a little more liquid... Good luck!