Sicilian Orange Cake

I found this cake of Sicilian origin from The Guardian, when I was looking for an orange cake recipe. The original recipe was from Rick Stein’s Mediterranean Escapes. This recipe was based on a traditional butter cake proportions, flavored with freshly-squeezed orange juice and its zest. Here, I had gone a little further by adding a splash of Grand Marnier which I believe it deepened the orange flavor in the cake.

The recipe calls for self-raising flour which I don’t always keep stock for, so I made a substitution by mixing all-purpose flour and baking powder. It works perfect. I also upped the orange juice by a little, which contributed to a nicely moist crumb. When it comes to traditional butter cakes, I always prefer to use salted butter, a tip I learn from my dad, who bakes the best Hainanese butter cake in my world. You could use unsalted but I would recommend adding a touch more salt to the batter. It alleviates the taste of such dense butter cakes.

The cake was good on the day it was baked but it was even better the next day when all the flavors meld together in harmony. If you like orange cakes, you have to make this NOW. If orange cake isn’t your favorite, still I think it’s worth a try. This is a good cake. Perfect with a cup of earl grey.

Sicilian orange cake

(Adapted from The Guardian)

Serves about 8

250g salted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing

200g caster sugar (reduced)

4 medium eggs

1½ teaspoons finely grated orange zest

250g all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

120ml (about 1/2 cup) freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tablespoon Grand Marnier, optional

3/4 teaspoon salt (if using unsalted butter)

For the icing:

125g icing sugar

5 teaspoons freshly squeezed orange juice

Equipments:

3″ by 11″ loaf pan

or

8″ round cake pan

• Preheat the oven to 170C/gas mark 3. Grease and line a loaf pan or round cake pan with non-stick baking paper.
• Sift together the flour and baking powder. Whisk in the salt if using unsalted butter. Set aside.
• Using an electric whisk, cream the butter and sugar together for 4-5 minutes until very pale.
• Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each one, if necessary adding a spoonful of flour with the last egg to prevent the mixture from curdling. Beat in the orange zest.
• Add the flour mixture all at once and mix in well, then slowly mix in the orange juice.
• Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer, inserted into the centre of the cake, comes out clean. If it starts to brown too quickly, cover loosely with a sheet of lightly buttered foil.
• Leave the cake, in its tin, to cool on a wire rack, then carefully remove from the tin and peel off the paper. Put it onto a serving plate.
• Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and stir in the orange juice until you have a spreadable consistency. Spread it over the top of the cake, letting it drip down the sides, and leave to set.

Serve cut into slices.