A fun swirl cake made with a beautiful yellow olive oil cake paired with classic chocolate buttercream frosting that has been bolstered with an entire tablespoon of almond extract.
Ingredients
3 cups / 13.5 ounces all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 1/2 cups / 9.75 oz sugar
2 teaspoons almond extract
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups / 12 ounces full-fat plain yogurt
1 1/3 cups / 10.5 ounces extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 cup / 285g unsalted butter, room temperature
4 1/3 cup / 525g powdered sugar
3/4 cup / 70g cocoa powder
2 tablespoons milk, cream, or coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 tablespoon almond extract
Directions
Preheat your oven to 325F with a rack in the center. Oil and line a 9-inch square cake pan with parchment paper.
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.
Stir the sugar and almond extract together in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the eggs, and keep going for a minute or two, until the mixture is light in color and billowy. Stir in most of the yogurt (reserve 2 tablespoons), and then beat in the olive oil until uniform and creamy. Add the flour mixture and fold until barely combined, avoid over-mixing.
Scoop 1 cup of the batter into a separate bowl, add the cocoa powder and the reserved 2 tablespoons of yogurt and stir to combine. Now you have a yellow batter and a chocolate batter.
Place two large spoonfuls of the yellow batter in the middle of the prepared cake pan. Top with one spoonful of the chocolate batter. Alternate this way, 2 spoonfuls yellow batter and one chocolate, directly on top of each other in the center of the pan until all the batter has been used. Very gently rap the pan on the counter to level out the cake.
Bake for 45-55 minutes or until the sides pull away from the pan a bit and the middle has firmed. Cool in the pan for 20 minutes, and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Use a mixer to beat the butter on medium speed until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk, salt, and almond extract. Stir by hand with a spoon to incorporate all the powdery ingredients (so you don’t make a mess), and then beat on medium speed for another minute or so. If you want your frosting a bit thicker, add more powdered sugar. If you want it a bit thinner, add more milk a tablespoon at a time. Covered tightly, you can keep the frosting refrigerated for up to a week, longer in the freezer. Bring to room temperature to use.
If your cake is a bit domed, use a serrated knife to level it out. Cut the cake exactly in half. Scoop a generous amount of frosting onto one half and spread evenly. Top with the other half, if you have the patience to do a crumb layer and refrigerate go for it, or simply slather on the frosting and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature to serve.
