The Food Maven Diary
[Archives]
Seliano Breakfast Cake
One of my first tasks when I came back last week from Paestum and my Cook At Seliano Culinary Vacation program was to come up with a recipe for the cake that my group ate for breakfast a few mornings.
Let me explain:
When my students are not cooking their own food, or eating in a restaurant, we eat at Tenuta Seliano, our base of operation, the farm-inn owned by my partner and friend Cecilia Baratta. Cecilia's kitchen is run by Anna, who supervises several other local women, all of whom are superbly expert at preparing the particular food of the area, as well as many pan-Italian specialties.
Breakfast is a simple meal on the farm. There's butter made from the same water buffalo milk that becomes mozzarella. There's crusty bread to slather it on, and jams and preserves made from the fruits grown on the farm – orange marmalade, plum jam, preserved figs, a berry jam. Naturally, the table is set with thermal carafes of strong Neapolitan-style coffee and pitchers of hot milk. On the sideboard, is sliced bread and a toaster to help yourself, and American cold cereals for those who absolutely must feel like they are at home. And if you must have protein in the morning, as I must, there's always some buffalo-milk ricotta in the refrigerator that I am happy to get for you and myself.
The hit of every breakfast, however, is Anna's breakfast cake. These vary in flavor, depending on Anna's whim, and are akin to our quick breads in that they are not too sweet, are risen with baking powder, and generally baked in a loaf pan. But sometimes they have the richness of a pound cake and Anna will bake them in a tube pan.
The recipe following is a cross between quick bread and pound cake. It is wonderful when warm, as any cake or bread is, but I personally prefer it the day after it is made, when the apples have had a chance to moisten the whole cake. If you don't gobble it up immediately, you'll notice that the cake keeps for several days. The ground almonds, not only the apples, help keep it fresh.
Cook At Seliano Breakfast Cake
(With Apples, Almonds, and Chocolate)
Makes 1 9-inch tube or bundt cake
Note: I have not tried the cake with olive oil. Anna insists the method would be the same, but then she doesn't even cream the sugar and butter before adding the eggs. She just puts all three ingredients in a bowl and mixes. Miraculously, her cakes always have great texture.
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 stick sweet butter, at room temperature (or 1/2 cup olive oil)
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose bleached flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces unblanched almonds (meaning still in their brown skins), finely ground
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped, or semi-sweet chocolate morsels or mini-
morsels
3 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9-inch tube or bundt pan.
Either by hand, or using an electric mixer, cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the eggs all together and mix thoroughly.
In a separate mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredient and mix until you have a very thick batter. By hand, stir in the nuts, chocolate, and apples.
Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Smooth the top. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Then invert onto a rack and allow to cool for 30 minutes more.
Serve warm or art room temperature, plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar.
