Anarchy Cake

By Hklbrries

"Faith Willinger improvised this unusual cake when she had a rather empty larder and company coming for dinner. It was immediately christened Anarchy Cake because, she writes, 'With recipes, as with so many things, Italians are basically anarchists.' You might think the anarchy is using salad dressing ingredients - olive oil and balsamic vinegar - in the cake, but it goes beyond that. The idea is that you act like an Italian, which is to say you pretty much do whatever you want, and it will still come out beautifully - the sign of a really good recipe.

I've found that when you use fruit, the cake comes out like a cross between a torte and a cobbler. When you use chopped chocolate (see variation), it's a bit like a large, fluffy chocolate chip cookie. Either way, it's a tender, low-profile cake that's golden brown, delicately cakey, a little crisp on the outside and not too sweet. It's a great emergency dessert that also works for teatime."

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries (about 8 ounces whole berries)
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp superfine sugar (divided)
• 3/4 cup cake flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp turbinado or granulated sugar

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan with parchment or wax paper, brush with oil and lightly dust with flour.

In a medium bowl, gently toss the fruit with 1 tbsp of the sugar and set aside. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat the egg with the 1/2 cup sugar and the lemon zest, until light, fluffy and pale. This could take as long as 5 minutes. Add the oil, then the milk and balsamic vinegar, beating until fully combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and drop the strawberries over the top. Sprinkle with the turbinado or granulated sugar. Bake for 50 minutes, or until the top is a beautiful golden brown and a knife blade inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then remove the sides of the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Chocolate variation: Substitute 4 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate for the strawberries but do not toss the chocolate with sugar. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Scatter the chocolate over the top of the batter and continue with the recipe.

Nutrition Information:
Per serving
171 calories
8 g fat (1 g saturated, 41 percent fat calories)
2 g protein
24 g carbohydrates
28 g cholesterol
Less than 1 g fiber
70 mg sodium