zucchini and meyer lemon marmalade snacking cake

meyer lemon marmalade and giant zucchini cake and iced herbal tea

This cake is very moist (thanks to the zucchini, the meyer lemon marmalade, and the olive oil), and not very sweet, making it a good snacking cake! The walnuts lend a nice texture and give the cake some substance, and the cardamom is a lovely compliment to the meyer lemon marmalade.

It pairs wonderfully with our herbal tea (hot or iced).

It's a very simple cake to make, the most important thing is to grate the zucchini right before you mix it into the batter, and to cook the cake right away (don't let the batter sit around), so that the zucchini doesn't weep moisture into the batter.

If you can, I recommend following this recipe by weight, not volume. I test if the cake is ready using a digital probe thermometer. If you don't have a thermometer, you can test the cake with a toothpick to see if it comes out clean.

ZUCCHINI AND MEYER LEMON MARMALADE SNACKING CAKE
Adapted from Tartine's 2006 cookbook

INGREDIENTS:

• 150 grams granulated sugar (3/4 cup)
• 145 grams olive oil (1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons)
• 2 large eggs
• 115 grams INNA jam meyer lemon marmalade (1/2 cup)

• 270 grams all purpose flour (1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (4-5 whole pods, ground)

• 115 grams raw walnut pieces (1 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 285 grams grated zucchini (2 1/2 cups) *1 overgrown zucchini

• 1 tablespoon sugar for topping

INSTRUCTIONS:

- Preheat the oven to 350º F.

- Oil and flour your cake pan. Which pan?

* The original recipe calls for a 9"x5" loaf pan. I only have a 8.5"x4.5" pyrex loaf pan, and when I baked this recipe in that, it took 1 hour and 40 minutes to cook through! If you have a 9"x5" pan, you can try using it, it's supposed to only take 1 hour.
* I ended up using a 9" round springform pan, which worked great! But you could also use a rectangular pan.

- In a big bowl, mix the following ingredients (you can use a whisk, I use a fork):

• 150 grams granulated sugar (3/4 cup)
• 145 grams olive oil (1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons)
• 2 large eggs
• 115 grams INNA jam meyer lemon marmalade (1/2 cup)

- In a medium bowl, mix the following ingredients (I use a fork):

• 270 grams all purpose flour (1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (4-5 whole pods, ground)

- Grate your zucchini

- To the oil mixture, add the following ingredients and mix to combine:

• 115 grams raw walnut pieces (1 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

• 285 grams grated zucchini (2 1/2 cups) *1 overgrown zucchini

- Add the flour mixture to the oil mixture, and mix just until it's combined. Be sure to not overmix the batter.

- Scrape the batter into your prepared cake pan, flatten the top, and sprinkle with a tablespoon of sugar.

- Bake until the center of the cake is 208º F, or when a toothpick comes out clean. It should take about 50 minutes.

- Run a paring knife around the edges to separate it from the sides. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then flip it over to remove it from the pan. Turn it back right side up and let it cool on a wire rack.

- store in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic at room temperature for up to 5 days (although I doubt it will last that long!). You can also freeze it.