With Valentine’s Day coming up, I figured I’ll take a little break from all the CNY treats to post this recipe which I made over Christmas and again in January for a birthday party. The fresh flavors were a welcome change to all the chocolate desserts during the holiday season…so, if you’re looking for something not chocolaty to make this Valentine’s, give this a try. The Orange Chiffon turned out light and refreshing – every bite reminded me of warm, sunshiny days 😀 and it paired deliciously with the Blackberry Sauce. Enjoy!
Orange Chiffon Cake
~slightly adapted from Little Corner of Mine Pandan Chiffon Cake recipe. I’ve tried other chiffon cake recipes but I always go back to hers!
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1¼ cups sugar, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons orange zest
6 extra-large eggs, separated
½ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
-
Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350ºF.
-
Whisk flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, salt, and zest together in a large bowl.
-
In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks, oil, and orange juice together.
-
With an electric mixer, whip egg whites and cream of tartar on medium-low speed until foamy. Then increase mixer speed to medium-high and whip the whites until soft mounds form. Gradually add the remaining ¾ cup sugar and continue to whip until stiff peaks form.
-
Whisk egg yolk mixture into flour mixture until smooth. Fold â…“ of the whipped egg whites into the batter with a large rubber spatula until combined. Then carefully fold in the remaining egg whites.
-
Pour batter into an ungreased tube pan and bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Invert cake pan and let cake cool completely. To remove the cake, run a small, thin-blade knife around the edge (including around the tube) and bottom of the cake and gently tap to loosen it. Serve.
 |
| Alex went to town with the zester |
 |
| Wonderful, fragrant orange zest |
 |
| Getting the dry ingredients |
 |
| Whip egg whites until stiff |
 |
| Whisk egg yolk mixture into flour mixture until smooth |
 |
| Fold in whipped egg whites |
 |
| Pour into ungreased tube pan |
 |
| Right out of the oven |
 |
| Ta da! |
 |
| Light and tender |
 |
| Delicious even without the sauce! |
Blackberry Sauce
2 (18-ounce) packages fresh blackberries, picked through (bought ours from Costco)
½ cup orange juice
½ cup honey
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
-
Wash/rinse berries and spread them out on a plate or baking sheet lined with a couple sheets of paper towel.
-
Reserve â…“ of the berries (just eyeballing the amount is fine), and place remaining berries in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan with orange juice and honey. Bring mixture to a boil. Then, reduce heat to medium or medium-low and simmer until berries are soft and falling apart, about 5 to 7 minutes.
-
Dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons water and stir into berry mixture. Bring mixture to a boil and cook, stirring constantly for about a minute (to remove the taste of the cornstarch).
-
Remove saucepan from heat and strain berry mixture, forcing as much of the pulp as possible through the strainer using the back of a wooden spoon. Discard contents in the strainer.
-
Add reserved berries to sauce and stir to combine. Cool, and store covered in the fridge.
 |
| Blackberries, orange juice, and honey |
 |
| Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer |
 |
| The sauce is ready to be strained |
4 thoughts on “Orange Chiffon Cake and Blackberry Sauce”