In good taste
This is my mom’s favourite cake. When she says that she is giving up sweet for Lent, she means that she is giving up this cake for Lent. It seems fitting then that I share this cake with you on Easter Sunday in celebration of this most important time in the Christian calendar.
It is perfect for your afternoon tea after the leisurely lunch.
Citrus cakes can be differentiated by the citrus used – orange, lemon or tangerine, but I call it a citrus cake because I always use a combination of citrus in various forms. I use the zest, juices and curds to contribute to the overall flavour of the cake. However, please use whichever citrus you have at hand.
This cake can be served with a syrup as soon as it comes out of the oven or a glaze. See recipes below for syrup and glaze.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup white sugar (you can usebrown)
- 6 oz. unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- Zest of 2 oranges
- 5 tablespoons sour cream, lemoncurd or whole milk yogurt
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Butter and flour an 8-inch baking pan, set aside.
3. Cream together the sugar and butter until pale and creamy, about 5 – 6 minutes with a hand mixer.
4. Mix in the eggs one at a time along with the zest.
4. Add in the orange juice, curd, yogurt or sour cream along with 2 tablespoons of flour and mix well.
6. Add the flour a little at a time and mix into batter. Be careful not to over mix the batter.
7. Pour into prepped baking pan and bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until skewer inserted comes out clean.
8. Cool in pan for 5 minutes then remove and cool on a wire rack.
9. Serve warm or at room temperature.
SYRUP
½ cup white sugar and ½ cup orange juice. Stir together in a pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes; remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
OR
½ cup white sugar, ½ cup water, and zest of 3 tangerines or lemons, limes or 1 large grapefruit. Mix everything together in a pot over medium heat. Bring to a
boil and cook for 2 minutes; remove from heat and cool to room temperature. (When you are ready to use this version of
the syrup you can strain to remove the zest if you like).
Using a toothpick, prick all over the top of the hot cake and drizzle with syrup. You do not have to use all of the syrup.
GLAZE
1 cup powdered (icing) sugar
2 tablespoons lime/lemon juice
Mix together until smooth and thick and drizzle over cake after it has been cooling for 15 minutes.
