This passionfruit loaf cake has floral olive oil and a perfect texture from greek yogurt, and is brushed with a passionfruit syrup and finished with a passionfruit icing
Hi! Happy Sunday! It’s been a bit of a quiet one around here - we got loads of snow yesterday so have just been keeping cozy.
I’ve been slowly getting back into the swing of things in the kitchen, and have been working on some fun simple recipes to share with you - starting with this Olive Oil Passionfruit Loaf Cake! I know a lot of my recipes are multi component and / or very time consuming, and although this cake does have a few steps to it, it comes together with just a few bowls and a whisk (and a scale of course), no washing your mixing bowl required!
Passionfruit is absolutely one of my favourite fruits - and it grows everywhere in NZ, so I was super bummed out when I moved to New York and realised that it’s not the right environment for it to grow here. Thankfully I can often find the frozen puree in the freezer section at the supermarket, which is the next best thing, and I splashed out and got a fresh passionfruit for the icing of this cake.
The cake itself is super simple - a basic olive oil loaf cake, fancied up a bit by the passionfruit. When it comes to baking with Olive Oil I always suggest using a great quality one, and this California Extra Virgin Olive Oil from my friends at Filippo Berio is one of my favourites. It is quite mild and fruity, with a tiny bit of a peppery finish, and I love how it compliments the passionfruit in this recipe. I worked with Filippo Berio all of last year, and I am so happy to tell you that we are working together again this year, so you can expect a blog post each month from me showing off their amazing products!
I wanted to get a triple dose of the passionfruit into the recipe, so I finished the cake off with a brush of a passionfruit syrup to help amp up the flavour and lock in some of the moisture, and then added a passionfruit icing made from puree and powdered sugar. All the components are super simple, but put together, they create a tiny bit of passionfruit magic. I hope that you will give this one a go! x
A few wee tips:
- I baked this in a Pullman Pan, which has super straight sides, but a one pound loaf pan 9” x 4 ½” x 2 ¾” would work too - just don’t go any smaller than that or you will have a bad time. I usually line my loaf pans with a parchment paper sling but this particular pullman pan is very non-stick so I just went with a good spray of baking spray!
- I always bake this on a baking sheet, just in case.
- I like adding the syrup while the cake is still a bit warm, so that it absorbs it nicely, but wait until it is properly cooled before adding the passionfruit glaze, so that it does not run off the cake. The glaze will look super rough when you first put it on, but it will settle and become smooth in a minute or two.
- I used passionfruit pulp / puree for this, which I got at my local supermarket in the freezer section. You could use regular passionfruits for this too - to get this, I like to quickly pulse the insides of the fruit in the food processor, which makes the flesh separate out from the seeds, and then strain to get the juice / pulp. Don’t buy passionfruit juice with added sugar - you want pure puree.
- I added the seeds of a passionfruit to the glaze, just for a little texture. This step is totally optional if you can’t find fresh fruit!
- I like my glaze to be quite thick - but by all means feel free to make yours a little thinner if you like. I usually start with 30g of passionfruit juice, mix it until fully incorporated, then add more just a little squeeze at a time. You need the glaze to be thicker than you think or it goes everywhere.
Thank you so much to Filippo Berio for sponsoring this post! All opinions are my own.
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Answers to your baking questions
Over the years, many of you have asked me questions about:
- baking in grams
- adjusting oven temperatures
- what kind of salt to use
- and many more!
I've curated and answered them all for your easy reference in this frequently asked questions post!
Olive Oil Passionfruit Loaf Cake
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: One loaf cake - serves 6-8
- Category: Loaf Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Olive Oil Passionfruit Loaf Cake. This passionfruit loaf cake has floral olive oil and a perfect texture from greek yogurt, and is brushed with a passionfruit syrup and finished with a passionfruit icing
Ingredients
Loaf Cake
- 225g sugar
- 300g all-purpose flour
- 80g almond meal
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 135g Filippo Berio California Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 135g passionfruit puree
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 150g full fat greek yoghurt, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
Passionfruit Syrup
- 60g passionfruit puree
- 50g sugar
Passionfruit Icing
- 200g powdered sugar, sifted
- 30g Passionfruit puree
- Seeds from one passionfruit (optional)
Instructions
OLIVE OIL PASSIONFRUIT LOAF CAKE
- Preheat the oven to 350°f / 180°c. Grease a pullman pan or one pound loaf pan (see notes). If you are using a loaf pan, line with a parchment paper sling.
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar, flour, almond meal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and whisk to combine.
- In a medium bowl, combine the Filippo Berio California Extra Virgin Olive Oil, passionfruit puree, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla bean paste, and mix to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until completely incorporated. Finish with a rubber spatula if needed to ensure that there are no dry ingredients left on the bottom.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, smoothing with an offset spatula or back of a spoon. Place onto a sheet pan (optional step but I like doing it just in case).
- Bake the loaf cake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean, checking for doneness after 50 minutes and tenting with foil if needed to stop the top of the loaf from browning excessively. Remove from the oven and allow to stand in the pan for 5-10 minutes, before turning out onto a wire rack and brushing with the passionfruit syrup (recipe follows). Leave to stand for a further 5 to 10 minutes, brushing additional syrup on if it seems to be absorbing, then allow to cool completely.
- Using a spoon or offset spatula, spread with the icing (recipe follows). Allow 10-15 minutes for it to set slightly before serving. Slice thickly using a sharp bread knife.
- Leftovers can be wrapped or stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
PASSIONFRUIT SYRUP
- Place the passionfruit puree and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine, then heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then simmer for 2 minutes to allow it to reduce slightly. Allow to stand for 5-10 minutes to cool slightly.
PASSIONFRUIT ICING
- In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar and passionfruit puree. Stir until well combined, then add more passionfruit a small squeeze at a time until you have a thick glaze (you need it to be thicker than you think so it doesn’t run). Add the passionfruit seeds if using, and mix to combine. Spread onto the cake.
Keywords: passionfruit, loaf cake, icing, pullman pan, passionfruit syrup, passionfruit icing
Comments
Can i substitute olive oil for butter ?
You can but it's not a 1:1 switch! I have this loaf cake which is super similar but uses lemon and has butter - you can do a 1:1 switch with lemon and passionfruit juice. I hope this helps 🙂 https://cloudykitchen.com/blog/lemon-and-sour-cream-loaf-cake-with-lemon-glaze/
It did! Great recipe super moist and delicious, totally recommend!!!
Yay I am so glad that you liked it! 🙂
Have you made this without the almond meal, in case someone has a nut allergy? Would you just increase the amount of flour?
Hi! I haven't but you should be able to sub the almond meal for AP flour 🙂
I hate to admit this, but I’ve never had passion fruit before.......I’ve always wondered what it was like so I took the leap and bought some. This recipe was my introduction to the fruit, and WOW! The flavor and texture of the loaf was fantastic. I was a little nervous that the olive oil would overpower, but it doesn’t at all. Really such a lovely little treat and a breeze to pull together. Highly recommend!
★★★★★
As per usual, this loaf turned out bang on. Erin’s recipes seem to be fairly foolproof. Excellent use of passionfruit and a quick and easy recipe to execute
★★★★★
This is a delicious loaf cake. I go back and forth between this one and the cranberry ricotta. Trying your lemon poppyseed tomorrow!
★★★★★
Easy and delicious, thanks.
★★★★★
Made this cake for a birthday celebration..it’s absolutely worth seeking out passion fruit for this recipe . I could only find bagged pulp with seeds, so I pressed the pulp through a strainer. Fresh, bright, just lovely!
★★★★★