Categories: Dessert
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups (150 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup (200 grams) sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 medium navel oranges
- 1/2 cup (48 grams) almond flour
- 1 stick of unsalted butter (8 tablespoons/113 grams), melted and cooled
- For the frosting and fresh oranges
- Segments from 3 medium navel oranges
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons orange liqueur
- 1 cup (240 grams) crème fraîche
- 3/4 cup (75 grams) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Directions
-
To make the cake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan and lightly dust it with flour.
-
Sift the all-purpose flour, salt, and baking powder together and reserve.
-
Put the sugar in a large bowl, then zest the oranges on top of the sugar. Squeeze the juice from the oranges – you’ll need 1/2 cup; set the juice aside. Using your fingertips, rub the sugar and zest together until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Reserve two tablespoons of this sugar in a small bowl on the side. You will use them later to stabilize the egg whites.
-
Separate the eggs, putting the yolks into the bowl with the orangey sugar and reserving the whites.
-
Add the orange juice to the bowl with the yolks and give it a whisk. Add the almond flour, switch from the whisk to a spatula, and gently mix it in. Add the flour mixture and continue to softly bring the batter together.
-
Moving back to the whites, put them in an impeccably clean bowl (they won’t fluff up if the bowl isn’t clean). I whisked the an do this in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. If you’re using a mixer, whip at low speed until they double in volume. Either way, when they’ve doubled, gradually add the reserved 2 tablespoons of sugar and continue to whip until they triple in volume and form glossy, stiff peaks. Using a spatula, fold half of the whites into the batter. When they are incorporated and the batter is lightened, you can gently fold in the rest of the whites. Pour the batter into the pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
-
Bake for 35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
-
To unmold the cake, run a small knife around the edges of the pan. Unmold the cake onto a cooling rack and let it cool to room temperature.
-
To frost and finish the cake: Mix the orange segments with the sugar and orange liqueur.
-
In a bowl, whip the crème fraîche with the powdered sugar and vanilla until it becomes more voluminous, about 3 to 4 minutes.
-
Spoon the whipped crème fraîche on top of the cake and casually spread it so it falls to the sides, then top it with the orange segments. Cut it into deliciously large slices and share it with your loved ones.