Orange and Pistachio Cake
Chris created this dish for Great British Bake Off ™ Season 7. A California native with deep Sicilian roots, Chris's love of baking began in his grandmother's kitchen — she emigrated from Sicily in 1929, bringing with her the island's signature flavors of pistachios, oranges, and almonds. For Cake Week's Signature Challenge, Chris reached back to that Sicilian heritage with an orange and pistachio loaf cake topped with cream cheese frosting and candied orange slices. The candied oranges were the element he was most anxious about — 'I was more worried about the orange slices than the cake, for prayer. I wanted to do her proud.' Prue declared the candied oranges 'perfect — just on the point of taking your teeth out' and called the cake 'delicious.' Paul praised it across the board: 'Flavor wise, looks wise, think you're spot on. That's a great cake.' Chef's Notes: The Judges' Feedback Prue — "I love candied oranges. The great problem is to get them soft enough to be chewy and nice":Prue…
- Time: 130 min
Source: Relaxed Recipes
Ingredients
- MAKE THE CANDIED ORANGE SLICES
- Slice the oranges into thin, even rounds, about 3 mm thick. A mandoline makes th
- Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Blanch the orange slices for 2 minut
- In the same pan, combine the sugar, 1 cup water, and corn syrup. Stir over mediu
- Add the blanched orange slices in a single layer . Simmer very gently — barely a
- Carefully lift the slices with a fork or slotted spoon onto a wire rack set over
- PREPARE THE CAKE
- Preheat oven to 350°F . Grease and line a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment, le
- Pulse the pistachios in a food processor until finely ground but not oily — abou
- In a bowl, whisk together the ground pistachios, flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream the softened butter
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the si
- Stir in the orange zest, orange juice, milk, vanilla, and almond extract
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two additions, using a spat
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Give the pan a ge
- Bake for 50–55 minutes, until the top is golden, the cake has risen with a chara
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift out using the parchment overhang and c
- MAKE THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and completely combined,
- Add the sifted powdered sugar in two additions, beating on low speed first to av
- If the frosting is too soft to spread, refrigerate for 15–20 minutes to firm sli
- ASSEMBLE THE CAKE
- Once the loaf is completely cool, spread the cream cheese frosting over the top
- Arrange the candied orange slices overlapping on top of the frosting, fanning th
- Scatter chopped pistachios over the frosting and around the orange slices for co
- If desired, drizzle a thin line of the reserved orange syrup over the slices for