Date Cake With Orange Blossom Syrup Food

DATE CAKE WITH ORANGE-BLOSSOM SYRUP

Steps:

• Syrup: In a small saucepan, bring sugar and water to a simmer, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat; stir in orange-blossom water. Let cool.
• Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush bottom and sides of a standard 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with butter; coat with flour, tapping out excess.
• Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. In another bowl, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla; beat until just combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with buttermilk in 2 batches, beating until just combined. Fold in walnuts and dates.
• Transfer batter to pan. Bake until golden brown and a skewer inserted in center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven; evenly pierce holes at 1-inch intervals in top of cake (all the way to bottom) with skewer, then pour syrup over cake. Let cool in pan.
• Serving: Serve slices of cake with whipped cream dusted with cinnamon, and orange segments.

JULIE GOODWIN'S ORANGE SYRUP CAKE

Steps:

• Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy and light. Add the zest and eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Sift the flour and ginger. Fold into the creamy mix.
• Pour batter into a greased and lined 26 cm spring form tin.
• Bake at 150oC for 50-60 minutes (or until cooked when tested).
• Meanwhile, when the cake is cooking: place the syrup ingredients in a saucepan. Dissolve the sugar over a low heat. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Skim off any scum that arises. Reduce heat slightly and simmer for 10 minutes (you should have just over a cup of syrup).
• Remove the cake from the oven when cooked, pierce the top of the cake all over with a skewer, carefully pour the syrup all over the cake. Leave to cool completely.
• Remove the cake from the pan and slice into wedges.

ORANGE AND ALMOND CAKE WITH ORANGE SYRUP

Steps:

• Grease and lightly flour a 23cm springform cake tin.
• Place the whole oranges in a medium saucepan, cover with water and boil for 2 hours, topping up with more water as it evaporates.
• Remove the oranges.
• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Cut the oranges into quarters and place in a food processor.
• Blend until smooth, then cool thoroughly.
• Place the egg yolks, orange liqueur and caster sugar in a large bowl and beat until smooth, then stir in the orange puree and mix well.
• Whisk the egg whites in a dry bowl until firm peaks form.
• Add the almonds and baking powder to the orange mixture, stir together well, then carefully fold in the eggwhites.
• Gently pour into the cake tin and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 1 hour.
• Cool the cake in the tin, then transfer to a serving plate.
• To make the syrup: place the orange juice, sugar and sauterne in a saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until reduced by half.
• Skim off any scum that forms on the surface.
• The syrup will thicken as it cools.
• To serve, cut the cake into wedges, top with the candied orange, or rind and drizzle the syrup over.
• Serve with cream.