Orange Almond Cake

Orange Almond Cake

Orange Almond Cake 

This cake recipe is very adaptable. I have made many versions. For example, the orange puree can be substituted with apple or pumpkin puree. You can also experiment with different flours like buckwheat, coconut, or almond flour. If you use coconut flour, add an extra egg to prevent the cake from drying.

Use a 6-8-inch springform pan or double the recipe if using a 10-12 inch pan. 

Or use a 9” square solid cake pan, but line it with parchment so it releases easily.

Note that cooking will take a solid 60 minutes if using the larger pan.

Test the cake with a knife. If it comes out clean, it is done.

2 large oranges cut up in 8 pieces each - seeds removed 

8-12 thin slices of citrus (oranges, blood orange, and tangerines - seeds removed, peel on for the top (bottom, inverted) of the cake 

Ingredients

4 Oranges: 2 to slice thin for the bottom  (top) of the cake. And two oranges to cook and make into a puree. Use relatively small to medium size oranges here, so if the ones you find are larger, you might only need 3 instead of 4. Use a variety of cara cara, blood oranges, and navel - you can use any variety. The cake looks nicer with the rind on, but it will be a tad bitter.

5 eggs, separated the whites from the yolks 

½ teaspoon cream of tartar   

2 cups ground almonds into a flour (or almond flour) 

1 teaspoon stevia or 4 packets of stevia  or 1/2 cup date puree  (6 dates soaked  in 1/4 cup hot water, juice or tea  and pureed) 

1 teaspoon vanilla or orange extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1 teaspoon salt 

Orange puree from 2 medium oranges

Bottom of Cake pan:

2 small oranges - sliced in rounds very thin with skin on - optional

This is for the bottom of the cake, which will be inverted and the top of the cake after cooking and cooling. To make the orange puree-:

Remove the ends of the oranges, discarding the tops and bottoms. Cut away the peels, and place the orange peels in a pot. Cover with 1 cup cold water, and simmer very low for 1 hour 40 minutes. Taste the oranges, and if they are still bitter, repeat. The summering removes the bitterness.

Batter:

Preheat the oven to 320°F (140°C convection). Grease and line a 23cm/ 9" cake pan with baking or parchment paper. 

Slice about 10-12 very thin slices of oranges and overlay a bit on the bottom of the cake pan. Cover the entire bottom 

Whip Egg Whites: Place the egg whites and cream of tartar in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment (or use a large bowl and electric egg beater). Whip on medium-high speed until foamy. With the mixer running, gradually add the remaining ¼ cup sugar and continue to whip until the egg whites are shiny and hold firm peaks when you lift the whip out and hold it upside-down. Fold one-third of the beaten egg whites into the batter, then fold in the remaining. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Blitz oranges: Place cooked chopped orange peels and raw orange flesh in a food processor. Blitz on high, scraping down the sides in between, until the mixture is pureed into a marmalade consistency with only a few visible bits of rind remaining. It does not need to be completely smooth. If you use dates and a hot soaking liquid, now is the time to add them. The dates are the sweetener here, if you choose.

Blitz in remaining ingredients: Add almond meal, eggs yolks, baking powder and sweetener. Blitz for 5 - 10 seconds on high until combined.

Fold in the stiff egg whites in to the cake batter. Mix until just foamy with still some white swirls.

Bake for 60 minutes: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans. Bake for 60 minutes, until the surface is golden and a toothpick of knife  inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Cool: Cool entirely in cake pan. Unless using a loose base pan, cover the surface with baking paper to help you turn it out (cake is sticky so may stick to your hand and tear the surface otherwise.)

Serve: Decorate as desired. I used slices of fresh oranges, rind strips, and sprigs of flowers. A dusting of icing sugar or powdered sugar is also lovely. Cut, then serve! 

NOTE Sugar is not an option for a healthy life, and stevia is a safe and healthy sugar substitute that can sweeten foods without the adverse health effects of refined sugar. Consider it as a first choice for baking. Use stevia that uses organic stevia leaf or extract only. Do not use the highly refined stevia leaf extract called rebaudioside A (Reb-A). 

NOTES ON ALTERNATIVES
When it comes to flavorings, here is what I suggest 

Almond Orange cake: use almond or vanilla extract, rose water, or bourbon 

For Apple or Pumpkin: use cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg or the apple pie spices

or 20 ounces apple puree (or apple sauce), or 20 ounces pumpkin puree 

For sweetener: use stevia or date puree, eight dates mixed with ½ cup hot juice of apple or orange and blended, or a tea, like rose or cinnamon. Alternatively I tested this recipe with ⅓ cup maple syrup as a sweetener, which was perfectly delicious. 

USE ⅓ cup maple syrup or 2 to 3 liquid drops of stevia, OR a 1 1/4 tsp powdered stevia. 

1 cup of sugar = 1 tsp of liquid stevia OR 2 tbsp of stevia powder, add teaspoons lemon juice, if you're using, or rose water, or rose syrup