Orange Drizzle Cake

I tend to send anything I bake at the weekend off to Mr CB's workplace on a Monday morning.  I would like to say this is because I'm a generous soul but it's mainly to stop me scoffing lots of cake come Monday night. They are also a great bunch at giving honest feedback and now it seems requests!  While having a drink with them all on Friday night it was requested that I make an orange, as opposed to lemon, drizzle cake.  That is fine with me as I quite like being given ideas for things to make.  I have used a recipe I found in BBC Good Food magazine for a 'Lighter lemon drizzle cake' but substituted orange for its more bitter sister.  This cake came under the healthy recipes section as it uses rapeseed oil instead of butter.  It is a lovely light cake and the orange flavour has come through nicely.


The Recipe


75ml rapeseed oil
175g self raising flour
1 1/2 tspn baking powder
50g ground almonds
50g polenta
zest of 2 oranges
140g caster sugar
2 eggs
225g natural yoghurt


For the orange syrup
85g caster sugar
juice of 2 oranges


1. Preheat the oven to 180c/gas mark 4. Grease a 20cm springform tin and line the base.
2. Put the flour, baking powder, almonds, polenta, zest and sugar in a large bowl. Mix together and make a well in the centre.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs and natural yoghurt and add to the well in the dry ingredients. Add the rapeseed oil and mix together lightly until just combined.  
4. Pour the mixture into the cake tin and bake for around 40 minutes until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Remove from oven and after the cake has cooled a little allow to cool on a wire rack. 
5. While the cake is baking make the syrup by putting the sugar and orange juice in a small saucepan with a little water. Heat  until the sugar is dissolved and then bring to the boil to thicken up the syrup.
6. Before the cake fully cools make several holes in it with a skewer and pour over the orange syrup.

Chocolate Orange Marble Bundt Cake

I love Terry's Chocolate Orange to the point where I can eat one almost in one go on my own,  usually secluded away in a quiet corner at some point between Christmas and New Year. No one else gets a look in.  My addiction started when my late Auntie May used to give me one each Christmas as a present along with a £5 note. Every year without fail. When she sadly passed along my Mum made sure, and still does, that I always get a Chocolate Orange in my stocking.  The strange thing is that despite this absolute love of them, especially the core of chocolate that gets left in the middle, I never eat them other than at Christmas, not even the bars you can buy. In fact I can safely say that I've never even bought one. I guess however that is what makes them so delicious to me. 


I saw a display in the supermarket the other day and it got me thinking about my love of these little balls of loveliness.  I was thinking that I really should make a Chocolate and Orange cake.  Last night I realised I hadn't checked out the We Should Cocoa Challenge hosted by the very talented Choclette of the Chocolate Log Blog and when I did what joy - this month's ingredient is orange.  I think the Terry's Chocolate Orange God has been doing his magic.  I thought about melting and adding an actual Chocolate Orange to my cake but it would just ruin my anticipation of eating one at Christmas (there is no way I could cook with one and not snaffle a piece or ,who I am kidding, a half).  Instead I settled on this marble cake which is a basic plain and chocolate mix but with a twist.  To the plain half I added some orange zest and some fresh orange juice. For the chocolate mixture I added in melted Lindt Dark Orange Intense and my secret ingredient - a teaspoon of Seville Vino Cotto.  It's not so secret really as I'm telling you about it - my friend bought me a bottle as a present - it is made Maggie Beer which is an Australian company.  It is, according to the bottle, 'a bitter sweet, highly aromatic velvety syrup thick with Seville oranges'. I've previously used it in dressings and on meat but not in baking. It gave the orange flavour a real depth.  I also used a teaspoon in the ganache topping. 


I gave Mr CB, who can always be trusted for an honest opinion (still smarting that my new outfit the other day apparently made me look a glam modern hippie goth....), a slice to try.  I hadn't told him about my thought process in making it and he said, 'It tastes like the best bits of a Chocolate Orange'. That pleased me (and made me forgive said hippy comment).  My kitchen also smells amazing to boot.


The Recipe


175g Butter
175g Caster Sugar
175g Self Raising Flour
1 tbspn fresh orange juice
zest of one orange
1 tbspn cocoa powder
100g dark chocolate (Lindt dark intense orange) melted
1 tspn Seville Vino Cotto


For the ganache


100g dark chocolate 70%
225ml double cream
zest of half an orange (save some to decorate)
1tspn Seville Vino Cotto
touch of icing sugar if you prefer some sweetness


1. Preheat the oven to 180c.  Grease a bundt or normal cake tin.
2.  Cream together the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and flour.  
3.  Divide the mixture into two bowls.  Add the orange juice and half the zest to one bowl and mix well. Add the remaining zest, melted chocolate and cocoa powder to the other half and mix that together. 
4. Put alternative dollops of the mixture into the tin and swirl to marble slightly.  Bake for around 25 mins until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Remove from tin and allow to cool on a wire rack.
5. To make the ganache break up the chocolate and place in a bowl. Bring the cream to the boil and pour over the chocolate.  Mix well until the mixture is smooth and glossy. Add the orange zest and Vino Cotto. 
6. Dip the cake into the ganache mixture. Decorate with some orange zest and leave to cool. 

Orange & Almond Cake

My favourite cakes are those lovely dense citrusy ones which are delicious with a cup of afternoon tea or served warm as a pudding. This cake, with its scant amount of flour, is exactly one of those types and was a very good post BBQ cake as I found out this afternoon.  It is very easy to make - the most fiddly part is boiling and pureeing the orange which is not really particularly taxing. I haven't converted the measurements to metric as it's so easy to get hold of cup measurers now. I personally love not having to bother getting the scales out!


The Recipe


1 orange
3 eggs
1 cup caster sugar
1/4 cup plain flour, sifted
1 tspn baking powder
1 cupbground almonds
1/2 cup marmalade


1. Preheat the oven to 180c. Grease an 8" springform tin and line with greaseproof paper.
2. Put the orange in a pan, cover with water and simmer for an hour until soft. Cut the orange in half, remove pips and puree in a food processor.
3. Beat the eggs and sugar until pale and doubled in size. Fold in the flour, baking powder, dal ones and orange puree. Pour into the tin and bake for one hour.
4. Melt the marmalade in a pan then pass through a sieve so you are justbleft with the juice. Spread it over the stillbwarm cake. Leave to cool then sift icing sugar over the cake.