Freezing Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

Asked by Wealey. Answered on 10th September 2016

Full question

I would love to make the Chocolate Olive Oil cake for my son's first birthday. However, I need to make it about a week in advance. Would this cake be suitable for freezing? Also, the cake tin is in the shape of a number 1 and is about 14" X 10" and 2" deep. I am expecting to double up on the ingredients and then make a further batch if necessary to fill the tin. Do you have any advice on the adaptations I should make to the cooking temperature and time?

Our answer

Nigella's Chocolate Olive Oil cake (from NIGELLISSIMA) has two versions, one is made with ground almonds and the other is made with regular plain (all-purpose) flour. Both versions of the cake will freeze well if they are wrapped tightly in a double layer of clingfilm (plastic wrap) and a layer of foil. It is best to wrap the cake while it is still sitting on the base of the springform pan, as this will help to support and protect the cake in the freezer. The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. To thaw the cake, unwrap it and leave it to stand on a wire rack at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours.

Unfortunately we suspect that the gluten-free version of the cake will not adapt well to a shaped cake tin. Gluten-free cakes are quite fragile and it is possible that the cake will break up when you try to turn it out from its tin. The version made with regular flour is more likely to hold together when removed from the tin. For the shaped cake pans you usually need to use the same amount of cake batter as for a 20cm/8-inch two-layer cake. However this cake does not rise as much as a regular cake and is for a 23cm/9-inch pan so you may find that a double quantity of the cake batter is approximately correct. The pan should have baking instructions with it but otherwise bake the cake at 170c/325F and start checking it after 35 minutes to see if it is done. The cake is baked when a cake tester inserted onto the most central point of the cake comes out clean.