Spiced Candied Orange cake.
With long, dark and cold nights nothing says winter more than spiced deserts! Warming cinnamon is a must have ingredient at this time of year. Pairing that with zingy orange what’s not to love?! This is a slightly different take on the classic orange and almond cake that you may be used to, moist, dense but light and crumbly cake with the warming cinnamon and vanilla, topped with zingy and sticky sweet candied orange and drenched in orange liqueur syrup, this is not just a show stopper at the dinner table its a classic in the making!
If you like warming spices, tangy citrus fruit and delicate buttery cakes, give this Spiced Candied Orange cake a try!
Ingredients
For the cake -
250 g Unsalted butter
250 g golden caster sugar
Zest and juice of 2 oranges
4 large eggs
225 g self-raising flour
90 g ground almonds
½ tsp baking powder
2 tbs whole milk
1 tsp orange extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
For the Drizzle –
Freshly squeezed juice of 2 oranges plus zest
50ml orange liqueur (Grand Marnier / Triple Sec / Cointreau). If not using alcohol, use the juice of 1 extra orange.
50 ml water
½ tsp orange extract
50 g icing sugar
For the candied orange –
2 oranges, thinly sliced
500 ml water
330 g granulated sugar
Method
1 -
Begin by making the candied orange. Place the sugar in a saucepan containing 500 ml of water and bring to the boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. To this, add the orange slices, reduce to a bare simmer and cook for 1 hour until the orange slices softened and translucent. After this time, transfer the orange to a baking tray lined with baking paper, discarding the syrup.
2 -
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease an 18cm / 8” round springform cake pan and line the base and sides with baking paper \ parchment.
3 -
In a large bowl (the bowl of your stand mixer if you’re using one), beat the butter and caster sugar until thick and pale. Add the eggs, one by one, mixing well after each addition, then mix in the milk, zest and juice of 2 oranges, as well as the orange and vanilla extracts.
4 -
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and cinnamon. Once mixed, fold this into the egg mixture until well combined. This can be done by hand or by pulsing it in an electric mixer slowly; be sure to mix until only just combined and no dry mixture remains. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until a skewer or toothpick, when inserted into the centre, comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes.
5 -
To make the drizzle, combine the icing sugar, orange liqueur, water and juice of 2 oranges in a saucepan. Bring this to the boil and reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes until the syrup is reduced by half (it should be thick and glossy). At this stage, remove the pan from the heat, add your orange extract and mix thoroughly.
6 -
Prick the top of the cake all over with a skewer, pour over half of the drizzle and top with candied orange. I personally slice them along the radius and fold them into an S shape to give the slices more height / interest but decorate them as you see fit. After this, pour over the remaining drizzle. Slice and serve!
Tips & Troubleshooting
This cake will store in an air tight container for 2 to 3 days. If making in advance, reserve the second half of the drizzle. Do not decorate with the candied orange until ready to serve. The drizzle can be warmed / thinned with a teaspoon of water to make it pourable again.
