One of our pastry cooks makes a flourless Orange and Almond Cake that draws on Jewish traditions based around the Mediterranean, Morocco and Middle East. It’s also a very popular cafe dessert in Australia where Chef Davis once worked. Gluten and dairy free, it’s great for those on special diets, but more so, it’s moist, rich and flavorful and oh-so-easy to make!
Orange Almond Cake
- 2 oranges,
- 1 cup bakers sugar
- Cointreau (optional)
- 6 eggs
- 2.5 cups almond meal
- 1 tsp baking powder packed.
Method
- Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add oranges and cook for 2 hours.
- Remove oranges from water and allow to cool to room temperature. Place in a blender and puree until smooth (I sometimes add a few dashes of Cointreau to this mixture!)
- Preheat the oven to 320°F. Grease a 9 inch spring form cake tin or a large 6 hole cupcake tray, and line base/s with baking paper.
- Beat the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer until thick, pale and doubled in volume. Add the orange puree and fold through, followed by the almond meal and baking powder. Mix well to break up any lumps of almond meal.
- Spoon into prepared tin/s and place in oven. Bake whole cake for 1- 1.25 hours and individual cakes for 20-30 minutes. Cakes are done when a skewer inserted in centre comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in tins, then run a knife around edges and turn onto a rack to continue cooling.
- Serve alone, sprinkled with powdered sugar, or as we do with raspberry puree and a mascarpone cream mixture or just whipped cream.