Orange-almond cake
Recipe for a festive cake decorated with mascarpone cream
The recipe for an orange-almond cake decorated with a cream Christmas tree is not only a unique combination of flavors but also a festive feast for the senses. Juicy orange and aromatic almonds combine to create a delicate cake, adorned with a creamy Christmas tree, adding festive charm. The simple recipe makes this cake perfectly fit the Christmas atmosphere, becoming an indispensable element of the holiday table. Discover the magic of taste and appearance in this unique orange-almond cake recipe!
Table of content
Orange-almond cake recipe step by step
If you are looking for a simple recipe for a delicious and moist cake perfect for the holidays, then you must try this recipe!
Christmas orange-almond cake recipe with video
Wyposażenie
- Baking pan approximately 22/22 cm.
Składniki
ingredients for orange-almond cake
- 170 g butter (softened)
- 200 g powdered sugar (1 and 1/3 cups)
- zest from one orange
- 2 eggs (size L – room temperature)
- 80 ml orange juice
- 160 ml buttermilk (at room temperature)
- approx. 1.5 teaspoons almond extract (or to taste)
- 225 g wheat flour – all-purpose (1.5 cups)
- 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
- 50 g ground almonds (0.5 cup)
- cream for decoration (- see notes below the recipe)
Instrukcja
How to make orange-almond cake
- Sift the flour through a sieve together with the baking powder, add the ground almonds and mix with a spoon.225 g wheat flour – all-purpose, 1.5 teaspoons baking powder, 50 g ground almonds
- Mix the butter with sugar and orange zest until a thick and light mixture is formed.170 g butter, 200 g powdered sugar, zest from one orange
- Add one egg at a time to the butter (I also add a tablespoon of flour with each egg) and mix briefly – just until combined.2 eggs
- Add orange juice and almond extract – mix briefly.80 ml orange juice, approx. 1.5 teaspoons almond extract
- Add about half of the flour and mix briefly, pour in the buttermilk and mix briefly.160 ml buttermilk
- Add the rest of the flour and mix briefly on low speed – just until combined!
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and level it.
- Bake the orange-almond cake in an oven preheated to 170 degrees Celsius (fan-assisted) for about 30-35 minutes – until a skewer comes out clean.
- After baking, cool the cake.
- Decorate the completely cold cake with cream – I covered the entire top with white 3m cream.cream for decoration
- In the center, I piped a Christmas tree with green-colored cream.
- I sprinkled the whole thing with colorful sugar sprinkles.
Film
Uwagi
Wartości Odżywcze
Orange cake with almonds notes
During the pre-Christmas period and winter, I love oranges and tangerines and eat enough of them to last all year. But besides eating the fruits themselves, I also sneak them into my baked goods. I love such aromatic, fragrant, and delicious orange cakes and other orange baked goods. This time, I added ground almonds to my creamed orange cake. Together, this created a perfect festive cake. Nicely fluffy, moist, and very aromatic. The cake itself is very simple, so to give it a festive character, I decorated it with a simple cream Christmas tree and colorful sugar sprinkles. Thanks to this, the cake looked beautiful!
Almond cake with orange – essential ingredients
To bake the cake itself, you will need a few basic ingredients. Below is a list of them and possible substitutes.
- butter – this is a creamed cake, and its fluffiness and moisture are due, among other things, to creaming soft butter with powdered sugar. To cream butter well, it must be soft and at room temperature. Use good quality butter with about 82% fat content here.
- buttermilk – instead of buttermilk, you can also use kefir, or a thinner natural yogurt. Remember to take it out of the fridge earlier so it warms up. However, if you forget, you can briefly heat it in the microwave and then mix thoroughly.
- orange juice and zest – for flavor, I added zest grated from one large orange to the cake and additionally squeezed juice from it – I got 1/3 cup of juice.
- almonds – I added ground almonds to the cake – if you can’t find them ground anywhere, you can grind them with a grinder or a food processor.
How to make almond-orange cake – tips
This is a creamed cake, and the most important thing here is to thoroughly mix/cream the butter with sugar. In this case, I prefer to use powdered sugar, which combines perfectly with soft butter. I always mix them together for several minutes until I see that the mixture has lightened in color and become fluffy.
Then, after adding the remaining ingredients, I mix them very briefly – just until combined. Mixing the dough for too long after adding flour can result in a tougher cake, or even a soggy bottom after baking. Therefore, it’s better to gently fold the dough with a spoon or spatula at the end rather than mixing for too long.
How to bake orange-almond cake?
Transfer the cake to a baking pan approximately 22/22 cm in size and place it in an oven preheated to 170 degrees Celsius (fan mode). You can also bake it at 180 degrees Celsius in top/bottom heat mode. Bake the cake for about 30 minutes – but remember that every oven bakes differently. Therefore, towards the end, check if the cake is fully baked and, if necessary, bake it longer.
How to decorate almond cake?
You can decorate the cake however you like – for everyday, simply dusting the top with powdered sugar is enough. You can also melt chocolate and drizzle it over the top – white chocolate would work well here. You can also serve this cake with whipped cream or with a cream made from heavy cream and mascarpone cheese. Instead of cream and glaze, you can prepare a simple icing, or an orange juice icing to emphasize the orange flavor of the cake.
I decided to decorate the orange-almond cake in a more festive way. For this, I needed a more stable cream that would pipe nicely and hold its shape regardless of the circumstances. Butter-based creams are best for this. Traditional buttercream is not among my favorites, so I opted for its more delicious version, the 3M cream.
What is 3M cream and how to make it?
The name itself already gives a hint about what kind of cream it is, because 3M stands for – butter, milk, and mascarpone. The milk used for this cream is sweetened condensed milk. You can use condensed milk available in a tube here, especially since 100g of condensed milk is enough to decorate this cake or cupcakes. If you don’t want to open a whole can and then wonder how to use it, then buy milk in a tube. The most important rule for this cream is that you use butter and milk in equal portions – I used 100g of each, and twice as much mascarpone cheese – i.e., 200g. And one more thing – all ingredients MUST be at room temperature, otherwise the cream may curdle during mixing.
The finished cream is very easy to color. You can also add flavor with flavor oils – I added a touch of orange oil. The cream pipes very easily and holds its shape well. What you don’t use can be stored in the refrigerator, then warmed to room temperature and used again.
Watch my short video where I show how I prepare this cream. First, I mix the soft butter alone for several minutes – at least 5 minutes, then I add all the condensed milk and mix only until combined. Finally, I add mascarpone cheese, one tablespoon at a time, at room temperature and mix briefly. I add food coloring at the end – you can divide the cream into different portions and add a different food coloring to each for color.
How to decorate a cake for Christmas?
I set aside roughly half of my 3M cream and added green food coloring and a touch of black food coloring in portions until I achieved the shade I liked.
I spread a thin layer of light cream over the entire surface of the cake. Roughly in the middle, I pressed out the shape of a large Christmas tree – you can also cut out a larger elongated triangle on paper, place it on the cake, and mark it with the tip of a knife. This will make piping the Christmas tree easier later.
At the very bottom of the marked Christmas tree, I placed a piece of cinnamon stick and began piping rows of green cream – I did this with a Wilton 1M tip (the so-called star tip). At the top of the Christmas tree, I placed a sugar star. You can also place, for example, a star anise. Finally, I sprinkled the Christmas tree and its surroundings with various colorful sprinkles. I didn’t use all the green cream here, and I had quite a bit left over. So, in the end, I also made a border along the sides and top edges of the cake with it – it looked like a garland of branches – which I also sprinkled with sprinkles afterward.
I came up with the idea for the “garland” after taking all the photos, so it’s not visible in them. However, I quickly took a photo with it, and you can see it below.
How to store orange-almond cake?
If you decorate the cake with 3M cream, it can stand at room temperature for about 2-3 days (provided your home isn’t too hot). It’s best to store the cake in a container with a lid. If the cake is dusted with powdered sugar or drizzled with chocolate, it can stay at room temperature (covered) for up to a week. With cream-based frosting, it’s better to store it in the refrigerator.
The cake can also be frozen. You can freeze it with buttercream decoration, or the cake itself without decoration. The cake can be in the freezer for about 3 months.
How many kcal does almond-orange cake have?
100g of the cake itself (without cream or glaze) has about 340 kcal. If you decorate the cake with 3M cream in a ratio of 100g butter, 100g sweetened condensed milk, and 200g mascarpone, then 100g of the cake will have about 374 kcal (this is an average value, because due to the decoration, each piece may have a slightly different caloric content). However, if you divide the cake with 3M cream into 16 portions, each of them will have about 327 kcal. For Christmas cakes, I think this is a very decent result ;)
I hope you like this recipe and will use it not only for the holidays. Because this orange-almond cake is so delicious and versatile in taste that you can eat it all year round!
Be sure to check out my other Christmas recipes, and I especially recommend my compilation – 60 Christmas cake recipes, where you will find my selected recipes for cheesecakes, poppy seed cakes, cheese-poppy seed cakes, cream cakes, gingerbreads, cupcakes, and of course, festive cookies.
Ps.
I recommend following my instagram for delicious and easy recipes!
Recommended recipes for orange and almond cakes
Also check out my other recipes for delicious cakes with oranges or almonds. There’s quite a selection on the blog, and here I recommend, among others, these three recipes:
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Orange Almond Cake Recipe
Check out my simple and delicious recipe for orange almond cake. This creamed-base cake is a showstopper for Christmas, looking absolutely stunning thanks to a decorative buttercream Christmas tree and colorful sprinkles. Follow my detailed step-by-step instructions, preparation photos, and video guide to bake this delightful treat today!
The combination of oranges and almonds tastes incredible and fits perfectly into the cozy winter atmosphere of the holidays. The "3M" cream (buttercream) is ideal for decorating—it holds its shape perfectly without being overly sweet. Check out my tips to learn how to decorate your Christmas cake and wow your entire family.
