Olive Oil Pound Cake

Total Time: 1 hr 45 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
• 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 1/3 cup brandy
• 1/3 cup fresh orange juice (from about 1 medium orange)
• glazed apple (recipe follows)
• 1 cup walnuts, toasted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 4 apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 4 cups, honeycrisp apples are best)
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• 1/2 cup calvados

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 325 degrees and arrange a rack in the middle. coat a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
• 2 make the cake: in a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt and set aside. in a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar until combined; add the lemon zest, olive oil, milk, brandy and orange juice and whisk again until combined. add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until combined.
• 3 transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. bake the cake, turning halfway through, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes. let the cake cool on a rack for 30 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the loaf and invert it onto the rack and let cool completely.
• 4 while the cake cools, make the apples: in a medium skillet, cook the sugar and water over medium heat, swirling the pan (do not stir the sugar and water with a spoon), until dark amber, about 8 minutes. fold the apples into the caramelized sugar. add the cider and calvados and cook over medium heat until the apples are tender and translucent, about 8 minutes.
• 5 cut the loaf into 8 slices and divide among 8 plates. garnish with the glazed apples and walnuts and serve immediately.