Upside Down Blood Orange Cake
Dominic Franks shares a favourite exotic sweet treat, which combines delicious fruitiness with vibrant colours.
Something very special happens around mid-Feb and that’s blood orange season. This blood orange upside down cake perfectly celebrates the wonderful fruit.
Their light orange flesh is speckled with deep ruby red. I love the fact that no two oranges ever look the same; sometimes you’ll have one that has just a hint of colour, the flesh and skin just blushing with a tint of burgundy, whilst others are dark, almost black with redness – and the taste, a sort of rich, sweet orange with a hint of sherbet.
This cake is a classic Middle Eastern olive oil cake with ground almonds. It has a slightly bittersweet taste and it can be an unusual flavour for some.
METHOD:
• Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin and sprinkle the base with a little brown sugar.
• Heat the water and sugar in a pan until the sugar dissolves and then layer in the blood orange slices and leave to simmer and soften for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the orange slices and place on a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Return the pan to a medium heat and reduce the sugar syrup until around one-third is left in the pan. Leave to cool.
• Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
• Place the cooled orange slices into the greased tin in a single layer, overlapping them and arranging so they are in a pretty flower spiral pattern.
• To make the sponge, beat the eggs, sugar, yoghurt, oil and zest until light and fluffy. This should take roughly 5 mins in a stand mixer. Then fold in the flour and ground almonds. Carefully pour the cake batter over the orange slices in the bottom of the cake tin.
• Bake for 35-40 min, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin, then carefully remove from the tin and turn it over onto a cooling rack. Peel back the baking paper from the bottom and drizzle with the sugar syrup whilst the cake is still slightly warm. Leave to cool before serving.
We Recommend
Never miss a copy!
Big savings when you take out a subscription.
Experience Lincolnshire - our special supplement this month, we share many ways in which you can enjoy quality time with friends and family across the county during the holiday season. From attractions, to festivals and have-a-go sessions, there is plenty of inspiration to be found. To read the full feature, download our April issue now at www.lincolnshirelife.co.uk/product/experience-lincolnshire-2026 or pick up a copy in shops.