Mix & Bake Slab Cake – Mandarin Ginger Cake

This simple moist and delicious cake made with ricotta and Great Southern Grove extra virgin olive oil is a wonderful cake for any number of toppings – here we have used mandarins, ginger, and flaked almonds. You could also bake the cake plain and serve it as a dessert with poached or stewed fruit or fresh berries and double cream. YUM!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup caster sugar
• 1½ cups plain flour
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• 1 cup ricotta
• ½ cup GSG extra virgin olive oil
• 3 large (60g) eggs
• 2 tbsp plain yoghurt
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• Large pinch salt

TOPPING

• • 4-5 mandarins, peeled and halved
  • ¼ cup crystallised ginger, roughly chopped
  • ¼ cup flaked almonds
  • 1 tbsp caster sugar

(See below for more topping suggestions)

METHOD

Preheat oven to 170ºC fan bake. Grease a 20cm x 30cm lamington tin and line with baking paper. Place the caster sugar, vanilla essence, ricotta, extra virgin olive oil, eggs, and yoghurt in a large bowl and whisk lightly to combine. Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined. Spread batter evenly into prepared tin. For the topping, place mandarin halves over cake surface and scatter over crystallised ginger and flaked almonds. Sprinkle with caster sugar. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cake is fully cooked (test with skewer). (Cover with foil if the cake is browning too quickly) Store in an airtight container.

TOPPING VARIATIONS:

Slice ripe fresh peaches & blueberries and scatter over cake batter. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp caster sugar and bake as above. Beat 250g cream cheese with 1 tbsp caster sugar and the finely grated zest of a lime. Dot cream cheese mixture over cake batter and swirl through passionfruit curd or berry jam. Bake as above. Scatter over fresh raspberries and bake as above. Stud cake batter with fresh figs and scatter your favourite crumble topping over and around them. Bake as above.