Twisted Butter Pound Cake
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
Butter and eggs reshaped into a loaf. Whipped egg whites folded halfway for air. Flour blended just enough. Butter swapped with olive oil for depth. Cinnamon replaces vanilla, a spicy shift. Baking time trimmed slightly to 35-45 mins at 175 C. Mix then fold. Cool fully, slice thick or thin. A denser crumb with a brown butter undertone. No nuts, kept lactose light. Rustic loaf, hints of sweet spice under crust.
Prep:
25 min
Cook:
40 min
Total:
65 min
Servings:
8 servings
#baking
#pound cake
#olive oil
#cinnamon
#lactose free
#French-inspired
#egg whites
#folding technique
Eggs split. Whites whipped stiff like clouds. Yolks beaten with olive oil, sugar and cinnamon spice. Swapped vanilla for warmth, butter for fruity oil. Flour folded slowly, gently kneading air inside. Oven preheated, pan oiled. Batter poured, puffed up in heat. Patience, watch the toothpick come clean. Pull out loaf, let steam fade, dry cool. Slice. Dense crumb, whisper of cinnamon and olive oil richness. No nuts here. No lactose pulse. Back to basics with a little twist of spice. Classic, but remixed.
Ingredients
- 5 eggs, separated
- 200 ml (7/8 cup) olive oil, mild flavor
- 140 ml (2/3 cup) sugar
- 10 ml (2 tsp) ground cinnamon
- 390 ml (1 2/3 cups) all-purpose flour
About the ingredients
Eggs divided, whites whipped to trap air bubbles. Olive oil replaces butter for moisture, slight fruitiness, and to reduce lactose. Sugar cut by 22%, lingering but less sweet than usual. Cinnamon swapped in for vanilla, introduces earthy warmth but no added alcohol content. Flour slightly increased by 4%. Keep constants: size of loaf pan and oven temperature adjusted only slightly down for oil instead of butter. No nuts kept for allergy-friendly; oil smoothness balances dense crumb. Use mild olive oil, not peppery, to keep delicate balance. Dry ingredients added gradually, careful to avoid over mixing. Key to structure is folding whites in halves, preserving air but binding texture.
Method
- 1 Preheat oven to 175 ºC (350 ºF).
- 2 Grease a 20 x 10 cm (8 x 4 inch) loaf pan with olive oil or butter.
- 3 Whip egg whites in a clean bowl until stiff peaks appear. Set aside.
- 4 In another bowl, beat olive oil and sugar until creamy. Add egg yolks one at a time, mix well.
- 5 Stir cinnamon into the wet mix. Gradually add flour, stirring just until combined.
- 6 Fold half of whipped egg whites into batter with an electric mixer on low. Gently fold in the rest by hand with a spatula, careful not to deflate.
- 7 Pour batter into prepared pan, smooth top. Bake in center rack 35-45 minutes. Check doneness with toothpick; it should come out clean.
- 8 Let cool in pan 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Cooking tips
Whip egg whites first for peak volume, dry and stable. Set aside while beating yolks with oil and sugar until creamy dull. Add cinnamon at wet stage so spice oils infuse evenly. Flour sifted in slowly, combined just until no traces remain to prevent toughness. Fold whipped whites in two stages to incorporate air carefully; first with mixer low speed to blend, then by hand with spatula to avoid deflation. Pan greased with oil to complement batter. Bake 5 minutes less than traditional to avoid drying since olive oil less stable than butter. Toothpick for doneness. Cool first in pan — loaf fragile warm — then on rack for even air circulation. Slice after fully cooled to avoid crumb compression.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Whip egg whites first. Use spotless, dry bowl. Stiff peaks only. Avoid any yolk contamination. Whites need dry, stable foam. Volume loss means dense loaf. Fold carefully after whipping. Mixing too hard kills air bubbles trapped inside.
- 💡 Beat yolks with olive oil and sugar until creamy dull texture. Add cinnamon now for even distribution. Incorporate flour gently. Stir just until no dry patches, else flour develops gluten. Over mixing toughens crumb. Flour measured carefully, sifted to prevent lumps.
- 💡 Fold whites in two stages. First half with electric mixer low speed. Helps lighten batter without over deflating. Second half fold by hand gently with spatula. Scrape around and under. Patience needed. Rough folding pushes air out, dense cake results.
- 💡 Grease pan well with mild olive oil, not peppery types. Oil suits batter better than butter here. Loaf pan size fixed at 20x10 cm. Too big or small changes baking time and texture. Try not to swap oil type or pan size unless for experience. Affect crumb density directly.
- 💡 Baking time 35-45 minutes at 175ºC, 5 mins less than butter versions. Olive oil less stable, dries easier if baked too long. Use toothpick test for doneness: clean but moist crumbs. Cool in pan briefly then to wire rack. Slice only after fully cooled to keep crumb intact.
Common questions
Why separate eggs?
Whites whipped for air, yolks beaten with oil and sugar. Separation key to texture. If yolks stay, no volume. Whites trap air which makes crumb lighter. Skip separation, cake denser.
Can I use butter instead of olive oil?
Butter changes fat content. Olive oil keeps crumb moist but lighter. Butter offers richer flavor but adds lactose. Adjust baking time slightly as butter cakes take longer. Possible but alters moisture and texture.
How to prevent dense cake?
Don't overmix flour. Fold whites carefully in halves. Whites must be at stiff peaks, no deflating. Overmix or rough folding crushes airy structure. Also measure flour precisely, flour too much stiffens texture.
Storing leftovers?
Wrap tightly room temp few days. Refrigerate longer storage but may dry loaf. Olive oil keeps moist but still can harden in cold. Freeze slices well, thaw at room temp before eating to regain softness.
