Orange cake

A friend gave me some lovely satsuma oranges before Christmas and I had to play with them.  I bake and make a cake every couple of weeks for the Legion for them to raffle off.  The proceeds go the community for various projects.
This is just my small way of giving back, but it's more of a selfish act on my part.
It really is.  I love to bake and decorate cakes. 

This time I wanted to make a cake using some of the frozen egg yolks I had in the freezer from a wedding cake I made last summer.

Those egg yolks weren't getting any younger, and I also wanted to use some of the lovely oranges I'd been given.
Guess what I found.  This recipe, but I did change it up a little.   I also wanted to make it a little more festive and didn't feel like running into town to buy pineapple (note to self, keep some canned pineapple on hand), or vanilla pudding for the frosting.  

I actually found several online recipes for Orange cakes,  but most of them used a cake mix as a base, and I don't use cake mixes, except once a year when I bake a birthday cake for the hubs.   By his request. 
I just frosted this cake with a good butter cream frosting.   And then had fun decorating it.
If I can't play with my food, I don't want to play.
So there.

I didn't get any pictures of the process with my camera and only just remembered to use my phone to get a couple shots of the cake. sigh, I was too much fun, what can I say?

Author: Sidsel Munkholm adapted from several online recipes

Orange Cake

prep time: 10 minscook time: 28 minstotal time: 38 mins

ingredients:

• 1 cup softened butter ( I always use salted butter, but if using unsalted add 1/2 tsp. Salt)
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 10 egg yolks
• 4 peeled  and segmented satsuma oranges, with each segment of orange cut into thirds.
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
• 1  tablespoon Grand Marnier liqueur
• 3/4 cup milk + 1 tablespoon
• 2 cups self rising flour
• 1/4 cup potato or cornstarch mixed into the flour

instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 2 8 inch cake pans and flour or use Bakers Choice spray which already has the flour in it.
   Cream the butter and sugar together for at least 5-7 minutes or until the sugar has broken down and the mixture is light and fluffy looking.  Beat in the egg yolks, and the 1 tablespoon milk.
   Add the cut  up orange segments, the vanilla extract and the Grand Marnier.  Mix together well. 
   Add half the flour mixture and fold in. Add the milk and mix until just combined, then add the rest of the flour.  Mix until it is just incorporated.  Pour half the batter into one greased pan and half into the other.   Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until just done.  The center will spring back lightly when touched or use a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake.  If it comes back clean the cake is done. 
   Take out of oven and let cool in the pans for 5 minutes then turn out onto a cake rack.   I use a small cake rack and then turn the cake right side up to allow it to finish cooling. 
   
   When ready to frost, place the cake top side down onto a cake plate to frost. 
   
   
   Using your favorite butter cream frosting, pipe a line around the edge of the first layer, then make concentric rings around the cake.  This helps to ensure not only an even layer of frosting in the middle but by piping a ring around the edge, you can then place the second layer on top of it and press down lightly.  The frosting will try to escape, which just fills in the gap in the layers.   Always frost the bottom of the cake, this keeps those pesky crumbs from invading the frosting. 
   Frost the sides and top with more buttercream frosting.  Reserve some of the frosting and tint it various colors if desired.
   
   
   I took some of the butter cream frosting and colored it a dark green, made a wreath around the top of the cake with my leaf tip.  I also took a christmas tree cookie cutter, and pressed it lightly into the top of the cake to get a tree shape.  I then outlined it in green and filled it in.  I 'decorated' the tree with dots of various colored frosting also made some 'presents' to go under the tree. 

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