Spanish Orange and Almond Cake

Lately I was browsing the internet looking for flourless cake recipes, when I came across this fantastic recipe on The Reader’s Digest Website. At first I was a bit hesitant of making and worried that the orange flavor may overpower the cake – since we are using two whole oranges including their skin. But still loved the concept and decided to give it a try. The cake turned out deliciously moist but lacking in overall a flavor. The second day I retested the cake one more time and added butter to the batter ….and the end result was tasty – I won’t claim that this is the best cake I’ve ever made -but still very satisfying.

So if you are looking for a flourless cake, keep this in mind. I even added some caramelized orange chips on top of the cake for a more fancy touch. I predict I will be making a lot in the future. Thank you Reader’s Digest for such a great recipe!

The last time I made the cake, I substituted coconut oil for butter, I so much loved the slight coconut flavor in the cake! So both butter and coconut oil will raise the cake to another level of flavor!

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Wash and pat dry the oranges. Cut into small cubes (including their skin), discarding any pips.

Place the orange cubes and the tablespoon of water in a saucepan over very low heat. Cover up and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Set aside and let it completely cool down.Placethe cooked oranges in a food processor andgive it a quick blitz. Or even use an immersion blender. Set aside.

Place the egg whites in a clean bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high speed until it turns foamy. Add only ½ cup of sugar and continue beating until soft peaks form.(Note that the cake features nobaking leaveners, so the egg whites are what cause the cake to rise.

Ingredients:

• 2 whole oranges, 300g/10.5 oz. in total
• 5 eggs, separated
• 100 g. / 3.5 oz. butter, softened, or even 1/3 cup of coconut oil (it worked wonderfuly with the coconut oil)
• 200 g. /7 oz. /1 cup white sugar
• 225 g. / 8 oz. ground almond
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon sugar vanilla

For Garnish:

• For the Orange Chips:
• 1 medium sized orange
• ½ cup sugar

• 1/3 cup icing sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1/3 cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Place a rack in the center of the oven.
2. Wash and pat dry the oranges. Cut into smallcubes (including their skin), discarding any pips.
3. Place the orange cubes and the tablespoon of water in a saucepan over very low heat. Cover up and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Set aside and let it completely cool down.
4. Place the cooked oranges in a food processor andgive it a quick blitz. Or even use an immersion blender. Set aside.
5. Place the egg whites in a clean bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high speed until it turns foamy. Add only ½ cup of sugar and continue beating until soft peaks form.
6. To a separate bowl, add the butter, the rest of sugar (1/2 cup), sugar vanilla and egg yolks. Beat for 1 minute. Add the ground almondsand whisk in the finely chopped oranges.
7. Fold in the egg whites, scrape the edges of the bowl and stir well to incorporate the batter.
8. Grease the sides and bottom of a 30cm/ 12 inches round cake tin, then place a parchment paper liner in the pan and grease the parchment paper lining the pan too.
9. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 50 -55 minutes or until you insert a skewer to the center of the cake and it comes out clean. Set aside to cool down.
10. Invert the cake onto a flat dish. Set aside. The cake can be decorated with icing sugar and toasted almonds. Serve with a whipped cream, if desired.
11. If you are willing to make the orange chips, keep on reading:

For the orange chips:

1. Preheat the oven to 100°C/200°F. Place a rack in the center of the oven.
2. Peel the orange. Using a sharp knife, slice the peels into the thinnest possible slices.
3. Sprinkle an oven dish with ¼ cup sugar. Place the orange slices on the sugar and sprinkle the slices with the rest of the sugar.
4. Bake the orange slices in the oven and check after 12- 15 minutes. Our goal is to caramelize the sugar and brown the orange peels without burning them. It may take 2 more minutes than the called time, depending on your oven. Remove the dish from the oven and let the orange chips completely cool down. Sprinkle on top of the cake ! Enjoy!

The last time I made the cake, I substituted coconut oil for butter, I so much loved the slight coconut flavor in the cake!