Monday, June 17, 2013

Neil Perry's Olive Oil and Sauternes Cake


I came into her room half an hour before the bridal dinner, and found her lying on her bed as lovely as the June night in her flowered dress — and as drunk as a monkey. She had a bottle of Sauterne in one hand and a letter in the other.
“’Gratulate me,” she muttered. “Never had a drink before, but oh how I do enjoy it.”
 
Chapter 4, The Great Gatsby,  F Scott Fitzgerald 

A couple of weekends ago, my family and I went on a day trip to Stanthorpe in Queensland. Stanthorpe is a rich fruit and wine area, so we were looking forward to a day of great eating (which indeed transpired).

At the cafe where we ate lunch, they sold a wide variety of locally made alcohol. I bought a bottle of Sauternes, a sweet dessert wine, having confused it with Calvados, an apple brandy, because of the apple on the label. I was a little disappointed when I discovered my mistake, as I had wanted to cook with Calvados. However, a trusty Google search later, I found that there were plenty of recipes using Sauternes as a component. We were back in business.

The recipe that particularly caught my eye was a one for Olive Oil and Sauternes Cake by Neil Perry, a famous Australian chef.  He served his cake with roasted pears, but as I did not have any pears, I made the cake by itself.  It is a plain but moist affair, and I can see why it would be a perfect vehicle for roasted fruit and syrup or poached fruit, as it would soak it up like a good bread with pasta sauce or rice with a curry.

Despite the non-obstrusive nature of this cake, it was popular at work and was gone in a flash.  The next day, a lovely girl whom I don't know ( but who clearly knows who I am!) complimented me on that cake.  I love getting feedback, so I was very pleased that this cake was a quiet achiever.

Have a great week.

4 comments:

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Ooh I visited Stanthorpe a couple of years ago! We had some delicious apples and apple pie there. What a lovely sounding recipe!

Kari said...

This cake does look super moist, and I can picture it with the pears. How nice to get the compliment too! I'm sure you're very popular at your workplace with all the baking you do (and of course for other reasons too!) :)

Johanna GGG said...

I am terrible with knowing my alcoholic drinks but I particularly love how it has literary associations as well as making a delicious cake

Kayte said...

The cake looks so delicious...and I have never had an olive oil cake before but they are all the rage everywhere these days. Fun to see how you solved your initial problem of what to do with the bottle you bought by mistake!