Vanilla/Orange/Chocolate Pound cake

December 6, 2009  •  Category:

I received two awards today and that made my Sunday! Thanks so much to Julie  from Elle’skitchenette and Ivy from Kopiaste. You made my day! 47137701_pi-love-your-award My sixteen year-old daughter announced that she was going to host a tea party for a few select friends. Great, said I, I will make a pound cake. We always had homemade pound cake growing up, a recipe our téta (grandma) had perfected, the famous quatre-quart in which one ingredient gets weighed and all the others have to follow suit. I remember her making it so carefully, almost like jewelry-work or embroidery, adding the eggs ever so slowly, never using any leavening. Well, I am using some leavening and  I wanted a more festive cake than the simple vanilla pound cake we used to get. This one is a triumvirate of flavors: Orange, Vanilla (with a touch ofturmeric) and Chocolate (dark). I was inspired by a recipe in Marlene Mattar’s cookbook مايده مارلين INGREDIENTS: Cake will yield 16 servings

  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs size large (2 ounces each)
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla, lemon rind, dash of salt

For the orange flavor, add 1 tablespoon orange rind and half a teaspoon of orange color and a teaspoon of orange blossom water For the chocolate flavor, add 1/4 cup of coco powder, 3 tablespoons of milk or cream and a  half tablespoon of butter. Heat it a small microwaveable bowl and stir till the mixture is creamy and well mixed without lumps. For the vanilla flavor, add 2 teaspoons ground turmeric (remember this spice is really good for you!)


METHOD: HAVE ALL THE INGREDIENTS AT ROOM TEMPERATURE

  1. Sift the flour with the baking powder and salt.
  2. Prepare the pan, lining it with a parchment or wax paper and grease and flour it or spray with Baker’s joy or a similar can.
  3. Beat the butter in a mixer till creamy, add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs, one by one,  first the white, then the yolk, very slowly,  until incorporated. Add the flavorings.
  4. Add the flour and milk alternatively, in three additions. Divide the batter and place in 3 bowls.
  5. For the orange flavor, add a few drops of orange food coloring and the orange rind and orange blossom water. If you don’t have orange color, add equal drops of lemon and red food colors.
  6. Measure the cocoa and the cream or milk in a small microwaveable container; add the butter and microwave 15 seconds at a time until the mixture is warm. Stir the mixture with a spoon until it is well mixed and creamy. Add to the cake batter.
  7. Pour the batter into the mold taking one large tablespoon from the orange, then the chocolate then the vanilla until all are used up. If you wish to, you can swirl the batters in the cake pan with a knife to create a marbled effect.
  8. Bake the cake at 325F for about one hour. Taste with a toothpick. If dry , remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes on a rack. Flip onto a serving platter. Cake can be cut in slices, each one wrapped carefully in wax paper and then foil and frozen for a few weeks.

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Comments

16 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Arlette says:

    Marhaba Joumana

    First million Congratulations for the wonderful Awards you deserve them my dear.

    second what a wonderful cake you have for us….Orange cake is one of my favourites, I never added chocolate . Both flavoures are a perfect match…. I have to try your recipe. thanks for sharing.

  2. SE says:

    wow..the cake looks fantastic..nice presentation with photographs for each step..

  3. sabah says:

    Toutes mes félicitations pour les prix que tu mérite pleinement. Ton blog est magnifique, je l’ajoute direcetement à ma liste de blogs amis, comme ça je n’oublierai pas de te visiter.
    J’ai beaucoup aimé cette combinaison d’orange et chocolat, une recette à tester, merci ma chère.

  4. Bria says:

    Wow, what a creative and interesting use of turmeric! The cake looks amazing. Your photos are gorgeous. Can’t wait to take a deeper look at your blog. It’s fab!

  5. maria says:

    i would never have thought to add turmeric to a cake – beautiful colour!

  6. Sophie says:

    A lovely & apart cake recipe!! i so love it!

    MMMMMMMM,…all the way! Congrats on your well deserved awards! Enjoy!!!

  7. Ivy says:

    Congrats on your Awards Joumana. Well deserved. The cake looks beautiful. I have used saffron to colour some desserts but have never used it in the cake mix. Great idea.

  8. shayma says:

    congrats on the award Joumana. turmeric in cake? sounds so unique and interesting, i shall try it!

  9. spice says:

    WOW! looks perefct…..I really admire the speed at which you not only cook & bake but also post it on the blog…..

  10. Nick says:

    This. Was. Incredible.

    My god. It turned me into a shark that smelled blood.

  11. Peter says:

    I get another pot of coffee going so I can have a slice of this cake.

  12. lara says:

    making this cake today !can’t wait 🙂

  13. Elena says:

    Very excited to make your cake today. We are Greek and my mother makes a version of this when we were young.

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