With my very limited knowledge of Jewish cooking, I went back to Jewish Traditional Cooking (Kyle Books, March 2013 for US publication) by Ruth Joseph (a Welsh-Jewish author) and Simon Round to fetch recipes suitable for Passover.

Easy Passover Cakes

Passover, with its flour ban, creates difficulties for even the most adept of bakers, and many people crave inspiration.

Here are a series of traditional cakes, along with some new, more tempting ideas. 

Passover Cake

Begin with a basic cake and make it your own with a whole host of different flavors to choose from.

Serves 8

For the basic cake

9 tablespoons Passover margarine or butter

2⁄3 cup superfine sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla sugar

4 organic free-range eggs

2⁄3 cup cake meal

2⁄3 cup potato flour

11⁄2 teaspoons Passover baking powder

a pinch of salt

3 tablespoons milk or water

6–8 tablespoons jam of your choice superfine sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 7-inch round cake pan with parchment paper. 

In a mixing bowl, cream the margarine or butter with the sugars until light and fluffy. Separate the eggs and beat in the yolks only. Sift in the cake meal, potato flour, and baking powder, and fold in carefully.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Add a spoonful of the egg white to the cake batter and mix in thoroughly. Now fold in the rest of the eggs whites, taking care not to knock out any air. Spoon the mixture into your prepared pan and bake for 35–40 minutes until risen and golden. 

After the cake has cooled, slice in half horizontally and spread the bottom half with jam. Replace the top half and sprinkle superfine sugar over the top. 

Variations 

Coffee and walnut cake (pictured): 

Add 2 tablespoons instant coffee dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water and 3⁄4 cup chopped walnuts. Fold in before you add the egg whites.

For coffee frosting combine 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar with 11/2–2 tablespoons strong black coffee. Beat well and pour over the cake. Decorate with extra walnuts.

Lemon/orange and vanilla cake:

Add the grated zest of 1 lemon or orange and 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar. Cream with the margarine and sugar. 

Fruit cake:

Soak i cup mixed dried fruit in the juice of 1 orange or lemon until plump. Add with the egg yolks. 

Carrot cake:

Add 11/2 cups grated carrot, the zest of 1 orange, and the juice of 1/2 lemon. Add with the egg yolks. 

Almond cake:

Add 2 drops of almond extract. Cream with the margarine and sugar. Sprinkle the top with 1 cup sliced almonds before baking.

Lemon drizzle cake:

Add the grated zest of 1 lemon. Cream with the margarine and sugar. Combine 1⁄4 cup lemon juice with 2⁄3 cup sugar and pour over the cake when it is out of the oven. 

Chocolate cake:

Melt 6 oz Passover chocolate and fold in before adding the egg whites.

Cinnamon apple cake:

Spread the cake mixture into a lined jelly-roll-style pan. Top with 31/2 cups (1 lb) peeled and sliced apples. Sprinkle with 1⁄2 cup superfine sugar, and dust with 1 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon. Bake and then cut into squares. Serve with Kosher non-dairy whipped cream.

(* Recipe from Jewish Traditional Cooking by Ruth Joseph and Simon Round - Kyle Books, March 2013- reproduced with permission- Photography by Isobel Wield)