Patricia Wells has long been a favorite cookbook author of mine. I have a number of her books, one of my first Patricia Wells acquisition was Home in Provence. Paging through my well used copy, I have noted “excellent” by so many of the recipes. I love cookbooks that are a sure bet~this is one of those. Every year at this time, I pull it out to make her Winemakers’ Grape Cake. My seasonal trigger is when I see champagne grapes at the store. (I have found them at Whole Foods and Trader Joes) I have never made it with regular table grapes- if you do, let me know how it turns out. However, if you can get your hands on the petite champagne grapes, do use them. It is a simple cake, but one that I anticipate every year. The champagne grapes make it a uniquely special treat. So far this summer, I am on cake number three and counting.
An easy delicious cake to make in late summer early fall when champagne grapes appear at the market
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-1/2 cups flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch salt
- 1 lemon, grated zest
- 1 orange, grated zest
- 10 oz champagne grapes
- powdered sugar, for garnish
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Preheat oven to 350F
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Butter and flour a 9 inch springform pan (I used "Spectrum" canola oil spray with flour)
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Combine the eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, whisk for about 3 minutes. Add the butter, oil, milk, and vanilla mixing completely.
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In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. By hand whisk together. Add lemon and orange zest, whisking to combine and coat zest with the flour.
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Slowly add the flour mixture to the batter. Mix at low speed until combined. Let rest for 10 minutes.
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Add 3/4 of the grapes to the batter, gently mix. Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan.
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Bake for 15 minutes. Remove cake from the oven and sprinkle the remaining grapes over the top of the cake. Return the cake to the oven, continue baking for about 40 minutes or until the cake is firm and golden with the edges pulling away from the side of the pan.
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Cool for 10 minutes. Remove the side of the springform pan and let cake cool to room temperature. Sprinkle with the powdered sugar before serving.
I have waited a year to eat this today my brother in-law baked me one and it was awesome!
My Patricia Wells book containing this is coming apart, and It struck my fancy to make it, so looked for the full recipe. A good homey cake, like the Burros plum tort reprinted by NYT regularly for years. I used only orange zest, table grapes, almond extract and cardamom, (what I had). Very good, kept well, and strikes me as dependable, since it worked well, even with rampant substitutions.
Thanks for posting, and always glad to see another PW enthusiast.
It’s almost impossible to imagine, but if you want a similar cake in plum season and don’t know about the plum cake, look on Food52, which has resurrected it. Also good with other fruit, (softened dried apricots, for example!).