Olive Oil Baby Cakes

I wanted something interesting to serve with coffee and the New York Times this morning, so I took a look through my file of "saved" recipes and came across this one by Michael Recchiuti, www.recchuiti.com.

They were a nice treat.  Served with jam and butter.

I made some as directed in a mini muffin tin. The rest I baked in a regular sized muffin pan.

The cups can be filled 3/4 full without any fear of overrun.  The mini muffin size would be great for a brunch or afternoon tea.  The larger sized muffin worked best for 

a morning muffin.

They are much like a toothy piece of cornbread, although with a slight citrus taste.

Olive Oil Baby Cakes

2/3 cup (150g) whole milk

3/4 cup (150g) extra-virgin olive oil

Zest of 1 lemon

Pinch of kosher salt

3/4 cup (115g) all-purpose unbleached flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 cup (115g) yellow cornmeal, medium coarse ground

2 extra-large eggs

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (120g) granulated cane sugar

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line mini muffin cups with paper liners or coat with oil. (You may also use a silicone mini muffin pan and omit the paper liners.)

Combine the milk, olive oil, lemon zest and salt in a medium bowl and whisk by hand until mixed. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, sift the flour with the bakin

g powder. Stir in

 the cornmeal. Set aside.

Put the eggs and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until creamy and doubled in volume. Add the milk mixture gradually and beat until combined.

Switch the mixer to low speed. Add the dry ingredients all at

 once and mix until just incorporated. Over-mixing will result in a tough cake.

Using a tablespoon, divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling them about three-quarters full.

Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pans 180 degrees after 5 minutes. When done a skewer inserted into the center of one comes out clean.

Let cool completely on a wire rack.

When cool, remove the babycakes, still in their paper liners, from the muffin cups. Serve at room temperature with a garnish or your choice.