Baking: Orange Cake

It’s a rainy Saturday night and I have opted to stay in rather than a night out in town.  I had a pretty productive evening of house chores and ended my night by baking a cake around 11pm this evening. It will be a welcome treat for Sunday.  

You will need:

Cake:
225 g butter
225 g caster sugar
2 tsp orange zest
4 eggs
225 g flour
3 tsp baking powder

Buttercream:
125 g butter
15 ml fresh orange juice
150 g icing sugar
1 tsp orange zest

Topping:
200 g icing sugar
30 ml fresh orange juice
a little more orange zest to add some colour to your glaze

Method:
(1) Preheat your oven to 160 °C (fan assisted) and grease 2 x 20cm cake tins and line the bases with baking paper

(2) Cream your butter and caster sugar together with your orange zest

(3) Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix in well after each addition

(4) Gradually add your flour and baking powder and mix in well

(5) Divide your mixture into the two cake tins and bake in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes until raised and golden brown.  Check by sticking a skewer in the centre of one of the cake and making sure it comes out clean

(6) Allow the cakes to cool in their tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely

(7) To make the buttercream, beat the butter, orange juice, icing sugar and orange zest together until smooth

(8) To make the glazed topping, put your icing sugar in a separate bowl with the orange juice.  Mix together.

(9) To assemble your cake, spread the top of one of the cakes with the buttercream and sandwich the other cake on it.  Pour the glaze carefully on top allowing it to spill over the side.