Spring is a sensational time to get fruity in the kitchen! With the scent of flowers blossoming in the air, it is a time for your food to flourish – filled to the brim with fresh and zesty flavours.
Hannah Brissenden
After a dark winter of hearty, heavy dishes, September is the best month to lighten things up in the kitchen and satisfy that sweet tooth in a fragrant way. This issue the Sydney Observer team have collated some of our sweetest dishes to tantalise the taste buds and provide an olfactory sensation for a nose that is finally unblocked and ready to appreciate the sensory delights of spring, glorious spring.
Orange drizzle cake with candied orange
Is there anything better than a slice of warm orange cake on a mild spring afternoon? There may just be, but I’d have to disagree. This is a quick and easy family favourite – perfect for whipping up when the pantry is running low on delicious mid-afternoon treats.
Ingredients
Cake batter
125g softened butter
¼ cup milk
Juice of 3 oranges
2 eggs
¾ cup raw sugar
1 ½ cups self-raising flower, sifted
Zest of 1 orange
Icing
50g softened butter
3 tbsp. coconut oil
Juice of 1 orange
1 ½ cups icing sugar, sifted
Zest of ½ an orange
Candied Orange
1 orange thinly sliced
2 tbsp. raw sugar
2 tbsp. water
Method
1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Mix together all ingredients for the cake batter, using an electric mixer for 3 minutes to thoroughly combine ingredients and remove all lumps.
3. Pour cake batter into a greased or lined loaf tin (alternately a cake tin is also fine).
4. Bake in the middle tray of the oven for 30-40minutes or until golden brown and the pierce test proves it to be cooked through.
5. While the cake is cooling slice the orange.
6. Place sliced orange into a lightly greased ovenproof dish then cover in sugar and water.
7. Place in oven and cook for 15 minutes – or until orange is lightly golden and crispy and all sugar and water has cooked onto the oranges.
8. Whilst cake is cooling and oranges are cooking mix together icing ingredients.
9. Ice cake, providing it is cool enough.
10. When icing has hardened and candied orange has cooled place orange slices on top of the cake. You can do this in a straight line or spread decoratively across the top of the cake.
Serve and enjoy!
