lemon olive oil cake

this recipe is a perfect example of what is, in my opinion, smart baking. the bulk of the lemon flavor comes from zest rather than juice, which lends for a more fragrant, less harsh citrus taste. eggs are separated and whites are whipped into soft peaks, lending the cake the only leavening it needs to make it light as a, um, cloud. olive oil replaces a more conventional butter, giving the cake a floral, heady flavor--even more so if you use extra-virgin oil (and you should!). cake flour makes it even lighter, and that final sprinkling of sugar gives it a wonderful delicate crunchy top layer. i served it with a lemon-vanilla spiked, barely sweetened whipped cream, but the cake is so texturally perfect that it's more than enough on its own. i will certainly be making this again and again--those folks over at gourmet don't mess around. (also: sorry for these atrocious pictures. night-time fluorescent-lighting photography...)
lemon olive-oil cake
serves 8 very tiny, selfless people
adapted from gourmet

• 3/4 cup olive oil (i highly recommend using a good quality extra-virgin), plus additional for greasing pan
• 1 large lemon
• 1 cup cake flour (not self-rising)*
• 5 large eggs, separated, reserving 1 white for another use
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons sugar for sprinkling of your choice--the recipe suggested regular white sugar, but i used turbinado for an extra hit of crunch and it did not disappoint.
  

*instructions on how to make cake flour here.

put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. grease springform pan (i used a regular cake pan and it was fine) with some oil, then line bottom with a round of parchment paper. oil parchment.

finely grate enough lemon zest to measure 1 1/2 teaspoons (honestly, i just zested the whole lemon, producing way more than 1 1/2 teaspoons of zest, and was happy i did) and whisk zest together with flour. halve lemon, then squeeze and reserve 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.

beat together yolks and 1/2 cup sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until thick and pale, about 3 minutes. reduce speed to medium and add olive oil (3/4 cup) and reserved lemon juice, beating until just combined (mixture may appear separated). using a wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture (do not beat) until just combined.beat egg whites (from 4 eggs) with 1/2 teaspoon salt in another large bowl with cleaned beaters at medium-high speed until foamy, then add 1/4 cup sugar a little at a time, beating, and continue to beat until egg whites just hold soft peaks, about 3 minutes.gently fold one third of whites into yolk mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly (batter might be a bit streaky, but don't overmix). transfer batter to pan and gently rap against work surface once or twice to release any air bubbles. sprinkle top evenly with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar. bake until puffed and golden and a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 45 minutes (avoid opening the oven while cake is baking as much as possible, as it will collapse very easily). cool cake in pan on a rack 10 minutes, then run a thin knife around edge of pan and remove side of pan. remove from pan and serve warm or at room temperature, plain or with whipped cream.