Strawberry Orange Breakfast Cake

The local market here has a table tucked in the back for “last chance” fruits and vegetables. Very (VERY) ripe fruit and on their way out vegetables- perfect for baking (or soup making in the winter). The other day they had strawberries for $0.99 so I knew I needed to bake something!

Cookie & Kate has a recipe for Lemony Blueberry Cake in her cookbook that I’ve been dying to try but my kids are still anti blueberry. In come the over ripe strawberries! This is a direct adaptation of her recipe just swapping out the flavors a bit. I felt like orange would go better with strawberries than lemon! Topped with a slab of butter and more chopped strawberries you have a real breakfast treat that could double as a summer dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Strawberry Orange Breakfast Cake

Ingredients:

Cake

2 cups (8 ounces) plus 1 tablespoon packed almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 eggs
2/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Zest from one orange
1 cup strawberries, diced

Orange-Maple Glaze

2 tablespoons orange juice
2 teaspoons maple syrup

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Generously grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan and dust it with almond flour to prevent sticking. (Alternatively, grease and line pan with parchment paper.)
In a large bowl, combine 2 cups of the almond flour, the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk to blend.
Crack the eggs into a medium bowl and beat with a whisk until the yolks and egg whites have blended together. Add the maple syrup, olive oil, and orange zest and whisk to blend. Pour the wet ingredients into the almond flour mixture and stir until there are just a few clumps remaining.
In a small bowl, toss the strawberries with the remaining 1 tablespoon almond flour (this helps prevent the strawberries from sinking to the bottom of the cake). Gently fold the strawberries into the batter.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the cake is deeply golden brown, the center is firm to the touch, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, to make the orange-maple glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice and maple syrup until blended.
Once the cake is out of the oven, place the cake, pan and all, on a cooling rack. While the cake is warm, use a pastry brush to brush or a spoon to add the glaze over the top of the cake. It should soak right in. Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes before carefully inverting it onto a serving plate or cutting board. Carefully flip it back over, then use a bread knife to cut it into 1-inch-thick slices.
Store any remaining cake in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 4 days.