Halloumi & black olive cake

Name: Halloumi & black olive cake
Yield: 8 - 10
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons olive oil plus extra for oiling; 1 small brown onion finely chopped; 3 large eggs; 250 ml (9 fl oz) milk; 200 ml (7 fl oz) olive oil; 400 g (14 oz) self-raising flour; 1 level teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 1½ teaspoons sugar; 165 g (6¾ oz) pitted black olives; 200 g (7 oz) halloumi cheese cut into 2½-cm (1-inch) cubes; 4 tablespoons fresh finely chopped coriander; 2 tablespoons dried mint; 1 heaped teaspoon sesame seeds; 1 heaped teaspoon nigella seeds; 25 g (1 oz) halloumi cheese finely grated

Hellimli zeytinli kek

“My Hellimli Zeytinli Kek has to be one of the most popular recipes on my blog and Instagram pages. My mum always makes her zeytinli (olive cake) separate to her hellimli (halloumi cake), but the combination of both the dry black olives and halloumi together, with the freshness of the coriander and the sweetness of the onions and dried mint is basically the best kind of double whammy, so I’ve merged my mum’s recipes into one epic cake. Is it a breakfast dish? Sure, why not, because when people ask me what to serve it with, my response is simply ‘a cup of tea’. ”

Serves 8 - 10

DifficultyNot too tricky

Bread Breakfast Baking

Meliz's Kitchen

By Meliz Berg

BUY THE BOOK

Tap For Method

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil , plus extra for oiling
1 small brown onion , finely chopped
3 large eggs
250 ml (9 fl oz) milk
200 ml (7 fl oz) olive oil
400 g (14 oz) self-raising flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons sugar
165 g (6¾ oz) pitted black olives
200 g (7 oz) halloumi cheese , cut into 2½-cm (1-inch) cubes
4 tablespoons fresh finely chopped coriander
2 tablespoons dried mint
1 heaped teaspoon sesame seeds
1 heaped teaspoon nigella seeds
25 g (1 oz) halloumi cheese , finely grated

Tap For Method

The cost per serving below is generated by Whisk.com and is based on costs in individual supermarkets. For more information about how we calculate costs per serving read our FAQS

Meliz's Kitchen

By Meliz Berg

BUY THE BOOK

Tap For Ingredients

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F/gas mark 6.
Line a 23-cm (9-inch) springform cake tin with greaseproof paper and brush the paper with a little olive oil.
Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and add three
tablespoons of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onion to the
pan, and immediately turn down the heat. Soften the onion for
12–15 minutes until beautifully translucent and lightly caramelised. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the onion to a plate to cool down.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the milk and oil and stir well. Sift in half of the flour and the baking powder, then add the salt and sugar and whisk everything together, before sifting in the rest of the flour and whisking until there are no visible lumps in the mixture. With a wooden spoon or spatula, gently fold in the caramelised onion, olives, hellim cubes, coriander and dried mint until combined.
Pour the mixture into the cake tin, sprinkle over half of the sesame and nigella seeds, then the finely grated hellim, and finally, the rest of the seeds.
Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for 40–50 minutes. After
40 minutes, insert a cocktail stick into the middle of the cake.
If it comes out clean, it’s ready. If not, give it another few minutes.
Leave to cool slightly in the tin, then carefully remove the ring and base and allow to cool fully on a wire rack for an hour before serving in slices with a cup of Kokulu Çay (Spiced Cypriot Tea, page 42 of Meliz's Kitchen).

Meliz's Kitchen

By Meliz Berg

BUY THE BOOK