Recipe: Magdalenas (little cakes using olive oil, Spanish)

MAGDALENAS

"Every afternoon, Spanish schoolchildren run home to their mothers for the merienda (afternoon snack), which will often feature these little cakes. Similarly, when they visit their abuelas (grandmothers), the first thing they will be given is a handful of magdalenas. This delicious little cake, here made using olive oil and a little lemon zest, is as much a part of the childhood memories of most Spaniards as the madeleine (a close relation) was for Marcel Proust whose book Remembrance of Things Past was famously provoked by the aroma of the little cake dipped in tea. Magdalenas are another example like the tortilla of the direct and simple school of Spanish culinary art They are also again like the tortilla difficult to perfect. This recipe will help you in your attempts."



1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
A heaping 1/3 cup superfine sugar
Grated zest of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons milk
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
6 eggs, separated

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix flour, sugar and lemon zest together in a bowl. Add milk, olive oil and 6 egg yolks. Mix until smooth.

In a separate bowl whisk 6 egg whites until stiff then add half to the olive oil mixture and beat in. Add the remaining beaten egg whites and mix thoroughly until smooth. Spoon the mixture into a well-greased 12-cup muffin or mini-loaf pan.

Bake them for 20-25 minutes. Serve warm, straight from the oven. They will collapse slightly as they cool.

Makes 12
Source: Cooking Spanish by John Newton