Orange cake

One of my favorite baking books is “Genius Desserts” written by the FOOD52 folks. I’ve mentioned it on and off in recent years and highly recommend it. I had tagged this cake as one to try - it’s billed as “whole orange cake”, the recipe published years ago in Sunset magazine. From a quick internet search I discovered that Sunset was first published in 1898!! Guess what - it’s still being published and the recipe is on their website.

Not long after I had added it to my baking agenda, lo and behold, over the next week or two, it popped up in my life, seemingly by happenstance. First I came across the same recipe in the NYT and then heard about the experience of making it from a woman attending a baking demo I was giving at a nearby assisted living facility. Kismet I say.

I’ll admit that what really drew me to baking this was the swirly Nordic Ware pan that I’ve had my eye on for awhile now. I kept telling myself “Susan - you don’t need another pan”, but I ordered it anyway. In my defense, the well-worn traditional style bundt pan that I used to have so many years ago is long gone and I had no urge to replace it. After all, I tend to prefer petite teacakes - love those financiers! - rather than large slices.

Buuuuttt . . . . Nordic Ware has been producing some very cool designs over the years and this one caught my eye - so classy without being too ornate. Something about those swirls.

10 Cup Heritage Bundt

While there are some whole orange cake recipes out there that require boiling whole oranges, this one calls for 2 oranges (about a pound), ends cut off but otherwise left unpeeled, then chunked up, seeded and pulsed in a food processor to a somewhat coarse purée. You can do that part ahead and hold it in the fridge until ready to make the batter.

I’ll go through the steps and link you to the recipe here. It is readily available on a number of sites and is certainly not unique to me. Who knows the countless number of folks who have made and enjoyed this cake over the years! Oh! You might notice my navel and cara-cara oranges in the photo below - seemed like a good combo.

As you plan your project, the do-aheads are: butter and flour the pan (or use pan spray), purée the oranges (you’ll portion out 355 g / 1 1/2 cups for the batter and compost or dispose of the rest), have 3 large eggs at room temp and 227 g / 2 sticks unsalted butter at soft room temp. When ready to make the batter, mise out 250 g / 1 1/4 cups sugar, 320 g / 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon fine salt.

You’ll be glazing the cake after baking - whisk together 150 g / 1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar and 35 g fresh squeezed OJ. You can always do this during the bake.

Here’s how my purée looked - remember I used a combo of navel and cara-cara.

Heat the oven to 325ºF. Cream the butter and sugar for 3-5 minutes until lightened and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, blending each fully before adding the next. Blend in the orange purée. Looked a bit like orange cottage cheese.

Hmmmm . . . . interesting look

Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and blend until incorporated and smooth.

Everything blended!

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Ready to bake

Bake about 55 minutes - you want a golden top, firm to the touch and a tester with just a few crumbs clinging. Let cool in the pan about 10 minutes then turn out onto a grid over a pan and cool completely.

One note here - I made sure to butter and flour all the crevices thoroughly even though the pan is billed as non-stick. This cake released from the pan beautifully. One of the frustrations I used to have with the old bundt-form pan I had years ago (a lighter weight knock off) was getting the cake out of the pan without leaving some pieces here and there. Grrrrr . . . . but not any more!

Hmmm . . . maybe I should do a test without buttering the pan - makes me nervous but gotta try it.

Spoon and brush the glaze over the top, into the crevices. I prefer my glaze on the thinner side - gauge the way you like it by starting with less OJ to confectioner’s sugar for a thicker consistency or add additional OJ or even a bit of water for a thinner glaze. Once glazed I pop it back into the oven for 3 minutes or so to set the glaze.

All glazed up

Delicious, moist and tender with just the right amount of orange flavor and a hint of sweetness - a perfect balance.

Steve and I enjoyed a slice with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream and some strawberries. Yum. A slice with morning coffee was good too, and the remaining slices went into the freezer for future enjoyment. Yes I would make this again.

I’ll be back with you as the weeks go by. Enjoy!

Apple pie tart

It’s a pie! No wait, it’s a tart! What?? Frankly, it kinda looks like some kind of coral reef creature.

For a recent supper at cousin Jen’s, I was in the mood to make something apple. Besides that, I had sprung for a bottle of boiled cider from King Arthur Flour and was so ready to try it out. It’s made in Springfield VT, a state which Steve and I called home for nearly 12 very enjoyable years.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ve most likely realized by now that I LOVE reading baking and pastry books, comparing recipes and techniques and continuing to gain knowledge about this craft. They give me much pleasure and inspiration to boot! Some of my faves are FOOD 52’s “Genius Desserts” and anything by Rose Levy Beranbaum. They are chock full to overflowing with cool stuff.

As I approached this apple project I reviewed apple pie recipes (again!) from “Tartine”, “Art of the Pie”, “The Baking Bible” as well as “Genuis Desserts”. GD’s is essentially a review of RLB’s recipe for fruit pies, creating a filling with concentrated flavor by cooking down the juices. I’m IN!

In my fall 2018 post on a couple of apple/pear/berry tarts, I followed Tartine’s method of cooking the apples in butter and sugar first then draining off the liquid and cooking that down. They were deelish! The Genius Desserts/Rose LB approach is a bit different - macerating but not cooking the fruit, then reducing down the drained off liquid to a lovely caramel.

Here goes! This go-around I used a combo of Granny Smith and Jonagolds. Years ago I used to think peeling and coring apples was such a chore, but it’s amazing how one can get into a rhythm and actually make a bit of sport out of it, racing against the clock to see how fast you might finish. It’s so satisfying!

Once the 2.5 pounds of apples for a 9-inch tart are peeled and cored, slice them up into ~1/4 inch slices and toss them in a large bowl with 50 g light brown sugar (or dark if you prefer), 50 g granulated sugar, a tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, some freshly grated nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Cover and allow to sit a room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to three hours to juice ‘em up.

In the meantime take your favorite pâte brisée, roll it out about 1/8” thick and line your chosen tart pan or pie plate. I chose an open 220 mm tart ring this time, and since I planned a lattice top I made sure I had a 2-crust quantity of dough on hand. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and hold in the fridge until ready to fill.

I rolled out the dough for my lattice as well, cut my strips and held them in the fridge until ready for final assembly. I thought I’d be creative and cut curvy pieces, but, when it came time to create my lattice, the strips didn’t really feel like staying very curvy until I coaxed them into submission. I made the best of it and it worked out just fine and dandy.

Ready to finish the filling! Transfer the apple mixture to a colander set over a bowl and let drain to release anywhere from 1/2 - 1 cup liquid. Sounding good already.

Pour the juice into a small saucepan along with 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and bring to a boil. Cook until caramelized and reduced to about 1/3 cup. Then I added a tablespoon or so of boiled cider to intensify the apple flavor.

Transfer the drained apples back into the large bowl and mix them with 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of cornstarch.

Place a baking stone or empty sheet pan on the bottom rack of your oven and heat to to 425ºF.

In the meantime blend the reduced apple caramel liquid into the apples and transfer it all into the lined tart ring. Create the lattice, trim, tuck and crimp or flute the edges. Brush with milk and sprinkle with raw sugar. Hold in the freezer while the oven heats.

Bake approximately 50-55 minutes. If your crust edges are browning too quickly, place an aluminum foil ring over them. Watch for bubbling juices and tender fruit when poked with a small, sharp knife. My pie-tart baked about an hour before I was happy with the bubbles and texture. Looking pretty tasty!

One problem with this baby is that a small section of the crust bottom and edge seemed to collect a lot of juice and didn’t bake through. It was also an interesting challenge to get it out of the tart ring. I ended up cutting a cardboard round slightly smaller in diameter, slid it under the pie/tart and lifted it up and out of the ring. Whew. Maybe a solid pie plate or lovely fluted ceramic pie dish next time, eh?

No matter - it was delicious, the boiled cider adding just the right tang and deep apple flavor. A classic, particularly topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Always remember - there’s more than one way to skin a cat!

Now can’t you just imagine the hint of spring just around the corner? It won’t be long folks. Happy baking!