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We had the pleasure of being introduced to this cake during our trip to Tuscany. We were told that traditionally this cake is made for only a few weeks a year.  The small sweet red grapes are used, usually those remaining after the grape harvest has been completed. Whatever the reason behind this cake it is a beautiful tender and flavoursome cake using part butter and part olive oil with juicy baked grapes. 

To make this cake is easy, and you only add 2/3 of the grapes in the mixture before baking for 15 minutes. After this time you sprinkle the remaining grapes over the cake and return to the oven.

I used the seedless red crimson grapes, but I think you could use any that you like. I have read that Jamie Oliver replaced the grapes with blueberries when grapes were out of season. What a great idea to enjoy this beautiful cake during other times of the year.

The lemon and orange zest gives a pleasant taste to the cake with the moist crunch of the baked grapes.  All in all YUM.

This cake would be lovely for breakfast, brunch or a tea cake either served alone or with cream, yoghurt etc.

We were served this for breakfast in Tuscany and it was great with a cuppa.

Hope you enjoy this cake as much as we do.

Beautiful Grape Harvest Cake

2014-07-04 14:04:15

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Ingredients

1. 3/4 cup caster sugar
2. 2 eggs at room temperature
3. 1/4 cup olive oil
4. 60g butter, melted
5. 1/2 cup milk
6. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
7. Finely grated zest of 1 orange
8. Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
9. 1-1/4 cup plain flour
10. 1 teaspoon baking powder
11. 1/2 teaspoon salt
12. 600g grapes (I used red crimson seedless)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160˚C/320F.
2. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin.
3. Whisk sugar and eggs with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment for 5 minutes or until thick, pale and fluffy.
4. In a jug, mix the olive oil, melted butter, vanilla, milk and both zests together.
5. In another bowl whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together
6. Add half the wet mixture into the whisked egg followed by half of the flour mixture and fold in gently.
7. Repeat with the remaining wet mixture and then the flour mixture, folding in gently.
8. Fold in 3/4 of the grapes.
9. Pour into prepared tin and bake for 15 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and place the remainder of the grapes on top of the cake and return to oven.
11. Bake for a further 60 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean. MINE TOOK ONLY 45 MINUTES.
12. Allow to cool in tin for 10 minutes and then turn out onto wire rack.
13. Serve sprinkled with icing sugar if desired.

By Not Quite Nigella

Sweet Saffron Spice https://www.sweetsaffronspice.com/