Apricot and olive oil cake

Apricot and Olive Oil Cake

makes one 9-inch cake

3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
2 large eggs
3/4 cup (190 ml) coconut milk (I used canned light coconut milk)
1/2 cup (125 ml) olive oil, plus more for pan
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon almond extract
1 cup (140g) all-purpose gluten-free flour
3/4 cup (75g) almond flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Large pinch of sea salt
7 apricots, halved and pit removed
2 tablespoons finely chopped pistachios
Powdered sugar, for topping

1) Preheat oven to 375F (190C). Line a 9-inch cake pan with a circle of parchment paper and brush sides and bottom with a bit of olive oil.

2) In a bowl, mix the sugar and zest together. Work the zest into the sugar rubbing between fingers. This releases the natural oils in the zest. Add the eggs, coconut milk, olive oil, vanilla extract and almond extract. Whisk together until smooth.

3) In a large bowl, whisk together the gluten-free flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the liquids into the dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Pour into the prepared cake pan. Top the cake with the apricots while overlapping slightly.

4) Bake the cake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about an hour. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes until cool enough to handle. Invert onto a cooling rach and let cool completely before serving with chopped pistachios and dusting of powdered sugar.