Olive Oil Ricotta Cake with Plums

By garciamoss

Ingredients

• Butter for pan
• 1 cup fresh, full-fat ricotta
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 9-10 small plums, halved, pitted, and set aside
• 1 tablespoon sugar or honey
• Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Details

Adapted from food52.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 350° F, and butter and flour a 9-inch springform.
In a large mixing bowl, combine and whisk the ricotta, oil, sugar, and zest together. Add one egg, whisk well; add the next, whisk again.
Sift all of the dry ingredients -- save for the confectioner's sugar -- directly over the wet ingredients you just whisked together. Mix with a spoon gently until just combined. (Use more of a folding motion toward the end -- this will help keep the gluten from developing in your batter, which will keep your cake from toughening or becoming too dense.)
Pour the batter into the cake pan, spreading it out evenly as needed. If your plums are very tart, toss them with a tablespoon of sugar or honey, and place them in the top of the cake, cut-side down. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the top is golden brown, the edges are pulling away from the pan, and a cake tester or toothpick comes out of the cake cleanly. (Depending on your oven, this could take up to 45 minutes.) Cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, then turn out to finish cooling on a rack.
Dust with confectioner's sugar, and serve slightly warm or at room temperature. This cake wouldn't be opposed to whipped cream or whipped mascarpone, either.