With citrus season in full swing, I just had to use these super delicious organic oranges I bought in a yummy baked treat. With the winter rains upon us, this is the time of year when I start craving a slice of saucy fruity cake in the late afternoon. So this year I’m going with an Italian Orange Cake. It makes use of the whole orange, giving it a little bitter kick. If you like the flavour of marmalade, you will definitely loooove this recipe.
By blitzing up the whole orange, and the addition of yoghurt, this is a super moist cake. To add to that, it’s drenched in orange syrup as soon as it comes out of the oven. The texture is extremely moist, reminiscent of a self-saucing pudding.
You can adjust the bitterness by reducing the amount of pith you include. Super zesty and almost retro in appearance, it makes me think of a Sunday afternoon visit to a favourite aunt. But it would also be the perfect inclusion on a high tea menu.
Italian Orange Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 – 2 Large Oranges (300g)
- ⅓ Cup Unsalted butter Softened to room temperature
- 1⅛ Cup Castor or granulated sugar
- 3 Large Eggs Room temperature
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ⅓ Cup Plain or Greek yogurt
- 1¾ Cup All-Purpose/Cake Flour
- 2½ tsp Baking Powder
Glaze
- Juice of 1 Large orange
- ⅓ Cup Castor Sugar
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 180°C
- Line the bottom and sides of an approx. 20cm spring-form cake tin with a removable bottom with non-stick cooking spray and baking paper. Set aside
- Zest your two oranges into a small bowl and set aside
- Next, quarter the zested oranges and remove the seeds if any (If you want to reduce the bitterness, remove some of the white pith first or peel the oranges before cutting and removing the seeds). Place the cut oranges in a food processor and blitz until smooth. Set aside
- Add the softened butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl or the bowl or your stand mixer, and mix together until smooth and creamy. Then add the eggs, yoghurt and vanilla and mix until well combined
- Next, add the processed oranges and the zest to the mixture and mix through
- Finally, sift in the flour and baking powder and mix until fully combined and lump free
- Pour the batter into your prepared cake tin, then bake for 50 – 60 minutes, until golden and a cake tester or skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean
- While the cake bakes you can prepare the glaze/orange syrup
- Remove from the oven and let cool in the tin for 15 – 20 minutes then remove the tin and baking paper and let cool completely
Glaze
- Juice a large orange or 2 medium sized oranges. Pour through a strainer/sieve if there are any small pips or pulp
- Add the juice and sugar to a small saucepan and bring to medium heat, stirring regularly to help the sugar dissolve
- Once the sugar has dissolved, let simmer for a few of minutes until you reach a syrupy consistency (You can check to see if it coats the back of a metal spoon). It should still be very runny though. Turn off the heat and remove from the stove if you wish. Place a lid on to keep warm until the cake is ready
- When the cake is baked and removed from the oven, use a pastry brush to liberally brush the cake with the syrup. It's best to do this in stages as not to make the cake soggy, but is best done while the cake is warm*
- Leave the cake to cool completely then place in the fridge until ready to serve
- Sprinkle with powdered/icing sugar if you wish before serving
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