Ingredients 

Cake 

• 6 tablespoon butter 
• 6 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 
• 1 cup sugar 
• 5 eggs large 
• 1 cup yogurt thick, Greek style, reduced fat 
• 2 tablespoon rose water 
• 2 teaspoon ground green cardamom  
• 1 cup almond flour 
• ¾ cup all purpose flour 
• ½ cup semolina flour  
• 2 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 pinch salt 
• 3 tablespoon slivered pistachios  

Honey saffron syrup 

• ½ cup honey 
• ⅓ cup orange juice 
• 2 tablespoon rose water 
• ½ teaspoon saffron  
• 2 tablespoon pistachios slivered 

Process 

• Preheat the oven at 350 degrees F. 
• In a mixing bowl, combine butter and the olive oil together. Add the sugar and whisk it all together until creamy. 
• Then add eggs, one at a time and whisk it very well. 
• Next add the thick yogurt and whisk it all together into a fluffy mixture. 
• Add rose water, ground cardamom and stir it in. 

• Sift the almond flour, all-purpose flour and semolina flour, one by one and lightly whisk it in the mixing bowl. 
• Sprinkle baking powder all over, add pinch salt and incorporate it very well into the mixture. 
• Pour the cake batter into a greased 10 inch springform cake pan that has been lined with parchment paper in the bottom. 
• Tap the bottom of the cake pan on the kitchen counter to even out the cake batter. Scatter the almond slices all over the cake batter. 
• Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 to 40 minutes until it is golden on the top and a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. 

Honey saffron syrup 

• While the cake is baking, prepare the syrup. 
• Combine honey and orange juice and bring it to a boil. 
• Lower the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. 
• In the meantime, grind your saffron threads using a mortar and pestle into a fine powder. You can add a pinch of sugar to help the threads grind into a fine powder. 
• Then stir in the rose water and ground saffron into the syrup. Turn off the heat and add the pistachios. 

Serving the love cake 

• Using a thin wooden skewer or a sharp pointed kitchen knife/utensil poke fine holes all over the cake. 
• Pour the warm syrup over the warm cake and let the syrup soak in for several hours or overnight. 
• Decorate with fresh or dried edible rose petals and more slivered pistachios.