This cake was nutty, earthy, and really really moist. The entire house smelled absolutely incredible while it baked- much of the credit should be given to the orange zest in the batter. Even more wonderful orange flavor was added after the cake was removed from the oven when fresh orange juice was drizzled all over the top. Fabulous!
This recipe was adapted from Huckleberry: Stories, Secrets, and Recipes from our Kitchen by Zoe Nathan with Josh Loeb and Laurel Almerinda. I weighed whole roasted almonds and then finely ground them in a mini food processor instead of using store-bought almond flour. I used fat-free Greek yogurt instead of whole plain yogurt. I also substituted oat bran for the toasted wheat germ in the original recipe. Wheat bran or ground flaxseed would also work as substitutes. I also baked the cake in a 9-inch springform pan instead of a 10-inch cake pan.
The authors offer seasonal adaptations to this recipe by substituting blueberries, raspberries, cranberries, apricots, peaches, or figs for the pears. Yummy!
Yield: Makes one 9-inch cake
For the Topping:
- 1/2 cup (110 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 55 g (1/2 cup plus 2 T) almond flour
- 20 g (1/4 cup plus 2 T) rolled oats
- 50 g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 30 g (1/4 cup) whole wheat flour
- 3 T all-purpose flour
- 2 T oat bran, toasted wheat germ, wheat bran, or ground flaxseed
- 2 T light brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp coarse salt
- 20 g (1/4 cup) sliced almonds
For the Cake:
- 170 g (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature
- 200 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 2 T light brown sugar
- 3/4 tsp coarse salt
- 1 T pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 160 g (1 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 55 g (3/4 cup) oat bran, toasted wheat germ, wheat bran, or ground flaxseed
- 25 g (1/4 cup) almond flour
- 3 T rye flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup (240 ml) plain yogurt (I used fat-free Greek yogurt)
- zest of 1 orange, *fruit reserved*
- 3 pears, peeled and thickly sliced into 6 pieces each (I used Bartlett pears)
To Make the Topping:
- In a medium bowl, combine the butter, almond flour, oats, granulated sugar, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, wheat germ, brown sugar, and salt. Blend with a pastry blender until homogenous.
- Add sliced almonds and blend with your fingers. Refrigerate until needed.
To Make the Cake:
- Position a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Line and grease a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper and cooking spray.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Incorporate the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl well.
- Pause mixing and all the all-purpose flour, wheat germ, almond flour, rye flour, baking powder, baking soda, yogurt, and orange zest. Mix cautiously, just until incorporated. Do not over mix!
- Scoop the batter into the prepared pan and cover evenly with the pears.
- Top with the crumble, allowing a little fruit to poke through.
- Bake for 1 hour 5 minutes or up to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Do not over bake!
- Allow to cool for 15 minutes in the pan; then squeeze the orange over the entire cake.
- Remove the side of the pan and gently pull the parchment paper from every nook and cranny of the cake.
Note: This cake is best served the day it is made, but it will keep, tightly wrapped, for up to 2 days at room temperature.
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