Choc-Orange Cake

I love making this cake because it uses both my beloved machines: my magi-mix and my kitchenaid. I also love eating this cake because it is moist, chocolaty and rich but it is almost good for you. It has two whole oranges, boiled and pureed, ground almonds and no butter or flour! It was my Grandpa's birthday the other week and so i made this cake for the occasion. My cousin and uncle are coeliac and as this cake is naturally gluten free it seemed the obvious choice. It is best to grind up your own almonds, just lightly roast them in the oven, allow them to cool and pulse them in a food processor to a coarse meal. You can eat this cake nude or ice it with a simple ganache, the actual cake is so moist you don't need it iced, except for presentation. Some people don't like the chocolate-orange combo, but i think it is a match made in heaven. Also, the orange taste is not too intense, even though it has two whole oranges in it. The only problem is mixing all the ingredients together thoroughly, I always have a few streaks of orange pulp. I have been experimenting with the sugar, using less refined varieties and a little less than the recipe states. A muscovado works well, resulting in a more dense, sticky cake or a raw caster sugar which produces a similar texture to white caster sugar, but a slightly more complex taste. This cake is best made a day ahead, to allow the flavours to develop.

P.S. One of the best investments i ever made was an oven thermometer. There is basically no correlation between the temperature on the dial and the temperature inside my oven. The true temp is way hotter, as such my cakes were always peaked, with crusty and cracked tops. The correct temperature is crucial for cakes, so if you don't have one and are encountering problems like i did, buy an oven thermometer! The other piece of equipment that changed my life was an electronic scale. WOW! Such a revelation, it completely transformed baking, where precision is so important. 

Ingredients: 

2 large oranges

6 large (80g) eggs, i generally have to use 8 slightly smaller ones

30g (1oz, 1/4 cup) unsweetened cocoa powder, dutch style

1 tsp baking powder

200g (7oz, 1 1/3 cups) chopped dark chocolate, melted and cooled

310g (10 1/2 oz, 1 1/3 cups) caster sugar, muscovado, raw caster or preferred sugar

300g (10 1/2 oz, 3 cups) ground almonds, (i forgot to measure how many raw almonds this is, as they loose a lot of water weight when roasted, try maybe 4 cups, any extra almond meal can be kept in the fridge)

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C (350F, Gas 4). Grease a 20-22cm tin and line with baking paper.

Wash the oranges and put them whole in a small saucepan with a cup of water. Cover with a lid, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the oranges until tender when pierced with a skewer, about 1 hour. Remove from the heat, drain and allow to cool. Chop the oranges roughly and remove the seeds, then puree, peel and all, in a food processor or blender. 

Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs in a large bowl until pale and thick, and ribbons form when the beaters are lifted out of the mixture. Sift the cocoa powder and baking powder together. Using a rubber spatula, fold the melted chocolate, cocoa powder, baking powder and sugar into the eggs. Stir in the orange puree and the ground almonds till combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Bake for 1 hour (usually a bit more, depending on the size of your tin), until tested with a skewer. As it is a moist cake, a few crumbs will cling to the skewer. If the cake is browning too much, cover loosely with foil toward the end of the cooking time. Allow to cool in the tine on a wire rack. 

Ice if desired or sprinkle with icing sugar or cocoa powder. 

Serves 8 - 10. 

From "Crave: A Passion for Chocolate", Maureen McKeon