Layer Cake - Orange and Almond

Layer cake, don’t you just love hearing and saying those two words… Layer cake, layer cake, layerrr cakke. This cake recipe for an orange and almond layer cake is all you need to make all of your cake dreams come true.

THE PRETTIEST OLD-FASHIONED LAYER CAKE I EVER DID SEE

Along with hearing and saying I also love making layer cakes, tall thin stacks with 4 to 6 layers of soft buttery cake and creamy sweet icing. Also I love making layer cakes for all sorts of reasons whether it is to take to a dinner party, or to make for someone’s birthday or to simply bake it for myself to gawk at, photograph and eat slowly with a cup of milky tea while admiring the evenness of the layers of both cake and icing.

Layer cakes used to frighten me, from the even cutting of the cakes, the stacking and icing, the crumb coat, the final coat, the sharp edges, the support, all of it was a little daunting at first and sometimes still is. But once you get the hang of what needs to be done and understand why things go wrong; it’s pretty simple.

I’ve written a post all about how to cut, stack and ice the perfect non-leaning-tower-of-pisa layer cake so if like me you were afraid at first please have a read.

This particular layer cake has a soft spot in my heart, it’s one of the first recipes I ever wrote and the flavour combination of orange and almond has become one of my favourites. Since the oranges take a fair while to boil, plan on doing this the night before you’d like to bake this beauty!

THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN CREATING A SKY HIGH LAYER CAKE

Also, as always these are some tips, I like to remind myself of before I start baking

• Ensure that you are using the freshest ingredients, this may sound silly but trust me when you add sour milk to icing (yes this has happened to me before) it is very upsetting!
• Ensure your butter, eggs, and milk are at room temperature to avoid that not so hot look of curdled batter
• Spend time lining your baking pans properly, this ensures your cakes release without any effort and make the layering of a cake like this easier
• Make sure your oven is preheated, I recommend using an oven thermometer because in my opinion no oven dial can be trusted
• Use common sense when testing whether your cakes are done, different pans and ovens mean different cooking times, so get yourself a skewer to test the cakes. If it comes out clean after being inserted into the center of the cake, you’re good to go, if not set the timer for another 5 minutes and test again!

📖 Recipe

Orange And Almond Layer Cake

A beautiful buttery cake dotted with fresh oranges and the sweet sent of almonds

This cake is swirled with a creamy American frosting and just has that old fashioned appeal that you can't help but give into!

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Prep Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Course Cakes

Cuisine Dessert

Servings 15 people

Equipment

• 3x 15cm cake pans

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 300 grams unsalted butter
• 500 grams granulated white sugar
• 300 grams eggs
• 440 grams cake flour
• 145 grams almond flour
• 25 grams baking powder
• 2 pinches salt
• 2 teaspoon almond essence
• 300 grams full cream milk
• 2 large oranges

Icing

• 320 grams unsalted butter
• 1 kgs icing sugar
• ¼ cup orange purée from oranges above
• 50 ml full cream milk

Instructions

 

• Start by preparing the oranges, place a pot of water on the stove and bring to the boil. Once boiling add both of the oranges and boil for 2 to 3 hours, until the oranges are very soft. Make sure that the oranges are always covered with water and top up if necessary.
• Set the oranges aside to cool completely. Once the oranges have cooled blitz them in a food processor, remove ¼ cup of the purée for the icing and the remainder for the cake batter.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease three 15cm diameter cake pans and line them with parchment paper.
• Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer with a whisk attachment and beat on medium high speed until the butter is white and fluffy. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
• Slowly add the eggs; one at a time ensuring to beat throughly and scarping down the sides of the bowl between each addition. Do not rush this process.
• Sift the cake flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.
• In a jug combine the milk, orange pureė and almond essence.
• Taking turns with the electric mixer on a low speed slowly add the wet and dry ingredients being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl now and again to remove any lumps. Once all the wet and dry ingredients have been added continue mixing until the batter is smooth and free of any lumps. Be careful not to over mix.
• Pour the batter evenly between the three prepared cake pans and place in the oven on the same rack. Bake for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
• Allow the cakes to cool completely before removing them from their tins.
• To make the icing; place the butter and the icing sugar in an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat the butter and icing sugar on a medium low speed until they come together. Add the orange purée and mix again. If the icing seems a little stiff add the milk, one teaspoon at a time until the correct consistency is reached.
• Cut each cake into two layers and begin to layer the cake ensuring each layer is directly above the one beneath it. Once you have stacked all the layers cover the outside of the cake with a thin of icing and set in the fridge for 15 minutes.
• Using a small palette knife swirl the remainder of the icing on the top and sides of the cake. Decorate with fresh fruits or flowers.

Keyword cakes, desserts, layer cake

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