I adore humble desserts like this olive oil and rhubarb cake. Simple ingredients, simple flavour, but for some reason they stand out to me the most. Let me tell you the short story of how this cake came about! Last week, I visited a national historic site, and a couple really nice ladies let me run off with a few ribs of rhubarb from their massive kitchen garden. I really wanted to make something classic and beautiful with it. I think I achieved just that! This cake is soft, light, tangy, and sweet. I love the crumble top that adds an extra layer of sweet and crunchy goodness. Give this a try before rhubarb season is over!
This recipe is vegan, gluten free, and refined sugar free.
If you make this recipe and want to show off on IG, you can tag me, @gardentotableblog.ca!
Serves 8
Ready in about 1 hour. let cool for an extra hour
Ingredients
Bottom
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/3 cup rolled oats
1 1/2 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil
1 heaping cup rhubarb, chopped into 1/4 or 1/2 inch pieces
Cake
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon corn starch
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
1 cup coconut sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with about a teaspoon of extra olive oil. I recommend lining the bottom with a fitted piece of round parchment, just to make sure it comes out nicely.
For the bottom layer (which will actually end up being the top - hence upside down cake), mix together the olive oil, coconut sugar, and oats. Sprinkle this onto the bottom of the cake pan. Evenly spread out all the chopped rhubarb on top of this.
In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, corn starch, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the almond milk, olive oil, coconut sugar, and vanilla. Then, pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir until just mixed and no dry bits remain. Pour the batter on top of the rhubarb. Be gentle, so the rhubarb doesn't pop through the batter. We want it to stay in an even layer on the bottom.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the end of a knife comes out clean. Wait 15 minutes until slightly cooled, so you can comfortably handle the pan. Turn the cake upside down on your cake stand. Don't wait too long, or it may be hard to remove, because the bottom will be super sticky. Peel the parchment off the top of the cake, and wait until cooled to serve.
Remember
Use a good quality extra virgin olive oil for this cake. Since it's an olive oil cake, we want to taste the flavour of the olive oil. Choose an organic, cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil that comes in a dark, glass bottle.