I Baked a Cake!

It's been two weeks since I last posted; between hosting out-of-town family, traveling out of town (twice) to visit family, and dealing with a laptop nearing the end of its life, I just haven't had much screentime. That said, it has also been two weeks full of cooking, baking, and crafting...even if I haven't been writing about it.

And so, I thought I'd come back with details of a most unexpected cooking adventure.

1. I decided out of the blue to bake a cake.
2. I chose a cake featured on the cover of a current cooking magazine.
3. It is not a chocolate cake.
4. It is a tangerine-flavored cake.

The thing is, I don't really  1) like to bake cakes, 2) generally attempt to make the kind of fancy cake recipes featured on covers, particularly those that require Bundt pans, 3) make any desserts that aren't chocolate or 4) like oranges. So this was all around uncharacteristic, and, admittedly, kind of fun. In the spirit of full disclosure, I'll add that while I don't much care for oranges, I love those little Cuties that show up in the market at this time of year, and that's what this recipe uses.

The chosen recipe was from Everyday Food Magazine (heart!) and was the cover recipe in the December 2011 issue. The recipe doesn't seem to be online as of yet, so I've included it below.

The recipe recommends making the cake a day in advance and storing at room temperature, so it'll be ready just in time for our tree-trimming plans tomorrow evening. I haven't tasted it yet, but if the batter is any indication...it's super yummy. I only ate a little bit, I promise.

***Note - I had some issues with the glaze. It was too thick, so I added some water, but apparently I added too much as it was then too runny, so then I was adding more sugar, then more juice, etc.. My suggestion would be to start with the suggested amount and add a little water at a time until it is the desired consistency. Also, that cookie sheet under the cooling rack? That's to catch the icing runoff. Missed that detail.

Tangerine Cake with Citrus Glaze
adapted from Everyday Food Magazine, December 2011

PRINT ME!

for the cake:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature, plus more for the pan
3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for the pan
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs
2 tbsp finely grated tangerine zest, plus 1/2 cup tangerine juice (I zested and squeezed 7 tangerines)
2 tbsp Grand Marnier (I didn't have any, so I used water)
3/4 cup plain lowfat yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract

for the glaze:
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
3 tbsp tangerine juice (I used 3 tangerines)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a Bundt pan and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar on medium-high until light and fluffy, about five minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in tangerine zest, juice, and liqueur. With mixer on low, add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions yogurt, and beat to combine. Beat in vanilla.

4. Transfer batter to pan, smooth top, and firmly tap pan on a flat surface to remove air bubbles.

5. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool in pan on wire rack, 30 minutes. Invert cake onto a rack set on a rimmed baking sheet and let cool completely. With a serrated knife, trim cake to sit flat if necessary.

6. Whisk together confectioner's sugar and tangerine juice until smooth. Spoon glaze evenly over cake and let set one hour (or as recommended, glaze, cover, then store at room temperature a day in advance).

Serves 12. Active time: 30 minutes. Total time: 1 hour, 25 minutes plus cooling.