Olive oil cake with date syrup

“Paired with a salted white chocolate ice-cream, this dish has all the flavours of the desert – dates, olive oil, salt and spice. It might seem like a lot of syrup to pour over the top but trust me, it can take it and it’s worth it!” Shane Delia, Shane Delia’s Moorish Spice Journey

• serves

  6

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  55 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Salted white chocolate ice-cream

• 175 g caster sugar
• 500 g white chocolate buttons
• 8 egg yolks
• 1 litre thickened cream
• 2 tsp sea salt

Syrup

• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 80 ml (⅓ cup) orange juice
• 50 g sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 8-10 cardamom pods
• 2 star anise
• 6 fresh dates, seeds removed

Cake

• 40 g panko (Japanese) breadcrumbs
• 175 g caster sugar
• 1 tsp ras el hanout
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 200 ml olive oil
• 3 eggs
• 1 lemon, zest grated
• 1 orange, zest grated

Freezing time 3 hours

Instructions

To make the ice-cream, place the sugar and 250 ml (1 cup) water in a saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat, then add the chocolate and stir until smooth. Set aside to cool.  Lightly beat the egg yolks and add to cooled chocolate.

Whisk the cream until soft peaks form, then gradually fold in the chocolate mixture. Season to taste with salt, then pour into a container and freeze for 2-3 hours or until firm. Allow to soften slightly before serving.

Meanwhile, to make the syrup, place the juices, sugar and spices in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add the dates, simmer for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat and stand until cool.

To make the cake, using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the breadcrumbs, sugar, ras el hanout and baking powder on low speed. With the motor running, gradually add the olive oil, then the eggs and zest. Spoon the mixture into a lightly greased and lined 11 cm x 21 cm loaf tin.Place the cake in a cold oven and turn on the heat to 160°C.Bake for 45 minutes, then increase the heat to 170°C and cook for another 10 minutes or until the top is crisp and a skewer withdraws clean. Remove from the oven, then pierce the cake all over with a skewer. Pour over the cooled date syrup and stand until cooled. Slice and serve with the dates and salted white chocolate ice-cream.

Shane Delia’s Moorish Spice Journey starts Thursday 15 October 2015 at 8pm on SBS and finishes 17 December 2015. Visit the Shane Delia’s Moorish Spice Journey program page to catch-up on episodes online, scroll through recipes and read our interview with Shane.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.