Orange Tea Cake

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Orange Tea Cake
Orange Tea Cake

I drink tea by the gallon. And sometimes, you just need a bit of sweetness to accompany your tea. This is that cake.

Now that it is citrus season, bring out the oranges and make this light, not-too-sweet tea cake.

Orange Tea Cake
Beat together some butter, sugar, hella orange zest and create a lovely cake. I was thinking of glazing it, but went with the powdered sugar topping. That is perfect. You can dress it up with some orange segments too.

Orange Tea Cake
The recipe says it serves 8. What?! How big are those pieces? I cut mine into 16 pieces.

Orange Tea Cake

Recipe:
Adapted from: Orange Cake from Epicurious
Gourmet, January 2004

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons (equals 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon) finely grated fresh orange zest
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup fresh orange juice (I needed two medium oranges to get enough zest and juice for this recipe)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Powdered sugar for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Prep an 8-inch square baking pan (I line mine with parchment and spray with Pam with flour).
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Set aside.
4. Rub the zest with the granulated sugar until damp. This will make the sugar very fragrant.
5. Cream the butter and sugar (with zest) with a paddle attachment until creamy (2 minutes).
6. Add eggs one at a time.
7. Add sour cream and orange juice to blend together.
8. Add flour mixture until just incorporated. Don't overmix.
9. Spread into pan and bake until toothpick comes out clean...about 30-40 minutes.
10. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto cooling rack.
11. When completely cooled, dust with powdered sugar.
12. Pour yourself and your friend a cup of tea or coffee, and enjoy!
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26 comments:

Audrey said... [Reply to comment]

perfect! I love simple cakes like this.

Mr. P said... [Reply to comment]

They're such cute little cakes!

the southern hostess said... [Reply to comment]

It sounds delicious and they're so cute!

Ria Mathew said... [Reply to comment]

Looks delicious! I love orange-anything! :)

Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes said... [Reply to comment]

This looks delicious! I made an orange cake with orange butter cream frosting for Christmas! I love the powdered sugar topping on your cake! Have a wonderful day . . . I wish computer screens were scratch & sniff!

Kristi said... [Reply to comment]

I think I will be making a few batches of this over the weekend. :)

Helena said... [Reply to comment]

This cake totally reminds me of summer. Me want warm weather!

Mary said... [Reply to comment]

Yum. I love simple and anything orange.

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

I am really drawn to this cake. To me it seems refreshing and light. Some candied orange slivers would be great.

Ana Degenaar said... [Reply to comment]

Oh my! I probably shouldn't be browsing around food blogs while on detox but I just can't help it! That looks insanely good!

Unknown said... [Reply to comment]

Your tea cakes look fantastic. I love anything citrus. I had to smile though; living in the south, tea is always sweet so no sweet treat is needed (just desired).

Heidi said... [Reply to comment]

I'm a sucker for anything citrus and my husband and son actually prefer cake with no icing. Can't wait to try this.

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

Beautiful cake! It reminds me of a Julia Child recipe I've had dog-eared for forever. So many cakes, so little time : )

Sue said... [Reply to comment]

Bookmarked! I've been feeling citrus-y these days, this recipe sounds perfect for my craving~

Viv said... [Reply to comment]

Gorgeous and delicate slices!
I'd love to have some right now for after dinner snack with tea :)

Brittany H. said... [Reply to comment]

I could see myself eating the whole pan of this. Easy.

Have a sweet day!
X,
www.brittanyhavican.blogspot.com

Lisa said... [Reply to comment]

Ooh this looks perfect! I love citrus flavors and I don't like icing. Must make this soon and brighten up our dreary Seattle tea time. Or coffee time, as the case may be.

lena said... [Reply to comment]

looks so delighting and simple too!

ostwestwind said... [Reply to comment]

Seen and done ;-)

The Food Librarian said... [Reply to comment]

@ostwestwind

Love that you made the cake already! Awesome!!! - mary

KK said... [Reply to comment]

everything always comes out so perfect! do you get it right (and yummy) on the first try or are there several attempts? these look scrumptious!

Eliana said... [Reply to comment]

So simple yet so delicious. I love it!

Bernideen said... [Reply to comment]

This looks great - I have a Berry Tea Cake on my blog today and found your blog while looking on line!

Anne said... [Reply to comment]

This cake is so pretty and looks delicious Mary! I love the flavors and your pictures are so great of course!

Anonymous said... [Reply to comment]

oh my goodness - this looks like heaven. i can't wait to make it. it's already saved to my online cookbook (http://cookmarked.com)

megi said... [Reply to comment]

Delicious! I love citrus in cakes and the texture looks just perfect.

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