Orange Almond Cake

A fragrant eggless orange almond cake that is moist, nutty and bursting with a tangy citrusy flavour!

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I love citrus cake – be it a slice of lemon loaf or a fresh orange cake. Much before we actually cut the cake and sit down with a slice, the aromas have already waifed through the house and permeated our senses, making me super impatient for the cake to bake and cool. This recipe is very special to me. It’s a really simple one but I’ve come to believe that there is no other fruit as suited for baking as an orange. It works great by itself and also as a combination with several other flavours like chocolate or vanilla. While I usually make it only with regular all-purpose flour, this time I wanted to try adding almond meal as well. I tweaked the recipe a bit, and was surprised with how well it turned out. With the tang from the fresh orange juice and the nuttiness coming from the almond trio of almond meal, chopped almonds and almond extract , this was a flavour bomb!

ALMONDS

For the batter I used ready almond meal which is nothing but coarse almond powder. You could make your own by grinding regular almonds (unpeeled) till your achieve a fine powdery texture. Almond flour is almost the same thing but made with blanched and peeled almonds and has a finer texture and is also perfectly fine to use in this recipe. I also used flaked almonds to add to the batter and to top the cake with. However if you don’t have them, you could also use regular chopped almonds for the batter and just skip adding them to the top or slice them thinly and use. The almond extract is optional but adds a little extra almond punch. Do keep in mind that it can be overpowering if you end up adding too much and can end up making your cake bitter. A few drops go a long way.

ORANGE

For this recipe, I used the juice of Nagpur oranges or the Indian “santra” although Valencia oranges are better for juicing. However use whatever is easily available to you. I also used the zest of a mandarin orange for its brighter colour. 

 

ICING

This cake is so good and aromatic by itself that I feel an icing will just take away some of its charm. Yet if you feel you want to dress it up, say for an occasion, you could do a simple citrus glaze with icing sugar + orange juice or icing sugar + milk + orange zest. Refer the ratios in my lemon loaf cake to make the icing

HOW TO MAKE ORANGE-ALMOND CAKE

To make the eggless orange almond cake we start with yogurt + sugar + melted/softened butter + almond extract in a large bowl. Combine all using a whisk ensuring that no lumps of sugar remain. You could even use a electric beater to do this.

In a smaller bowl, combine all-purpose flour, baking powder and baking soda and mix.  Add this to the yogurt-sugar-butter mixture, and also add the almond meal and mix it all together. Do not mix too vigorously and don’t use a beater here. A simple whisk or spatula is ideal. 

Next add the orange juice in 2 or 3 batches, not all at once. Keep mixing as you go. I added about half a cup but if you want a little more orange flavor, you could add 1-2 tbsp more. Also ensure you don’t add the seeds. It’s better to sieve the juice so no fiber or seeds of the fruit go into the batter.

Finally add the orange zest and half of the almond flakes. If using regular whole almonds, ensure to chop them up into smaller pieces. It’s better to avoid adding chopped nuts completely if younger kids/babies are going to be eating the cake too. Fold them into the batter. I used the zest of two mandarin oranges since they’re smaller. If using a regular orange, the zest of one should suffice.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and give the pan a light tap on a flat surface to even the batter. Top this up with the remaining almond flakes if using. You could also get creative and arrange the almonds in a pattern. I just don’t have that kind of patience so I just throw them on top. 

Bake till you can’t bear the wait any longer. LOL! Kidding. The cake will take about 45-50 minutes depending on the size of your pan. Do not try and open the oven door too early or the cake will sink later as it cools. When it’s ready, the cake will also slightly pull away from the sides of the pan.

And that’s it! Let it cool and then dig in. Store the cake in an airtight container and refrigerated it can last upto 4 days.

Did you try this recipe? Give me a shout-out in the comments or on insta!

Other tea-time recipes you may like

• Coffee Cinnamon Cake
• Pear & Walnut Cake
• Upside-Down Apple Cake
• Epic Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies