Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Orange-Scented Olive Oil Cake



Orange-Scented Olive Oil Cake
by Amy
adapted from a recipe on saveur.com

2 oranges
2 1/3 cups sugar
unsalted butter, for greasing
1 1/2 cups flour, plus extra for the pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup powdered sugar


Trim about half an inch from the tops and bottoms of oranges and cut them into quarters, lengthwise.  Put into a 4-quart saucepan and fill with 6 cups of water.  Bring to a rapid boil.  Drain the water and repeat this process a total of 3 times.  After the last time, add 1 cup of sugar and 4 cups of fresh water into the pan.  Cook over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves and orange rinds can be easily pierced with a fork; about 30 minutes.  Remove pan from heat and let cool to room temperature.  You can also do this a day ahead and keep the oranges with syrup in the refrigerator overnight. 

Heat oven to 350°F.  Grease a 10-inch round cake pan with butter, dust with flour and line the bottom of the pan with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit.  Set pan aside. 

Whisk together flour, baking powder and baking soda in a a medium bowl and set aside.  Remove the orange segments from the syrup, removing any seeds, but leaving the peels intact.  Put the orange pieces into a food processor and pulse until the oranges form a chunky puree.  Add remaining sugar, reserved flour mixture, vanilla and eggs and process in the food processor until incorporated, about 3-4 minutes.  Add the olive oil and process until thoroughly combined.  Pour batter into your prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean; about 40-45 minutes. 

Let cake cool for 30 minutes while you whisk the fresh orange juice and powdered sugar into a thin glaze.  Transfer the cake to a plate and using a pastry brush, brush the glaze over the top and sides of cake.  Let the cake cool completely before serving. 

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