Orange Chiffon Cake

I would very much like my dreams to ALL be of cake. SWEET, FLUFFY, GLORIOUS CAKE. Unfortunately it’s not like that, and I actually have to bake my own cakes in real life… but… I guess I get to eat those real-life cakes as well. Heh.

Amongst some of the most pleasurable cakes to bake is this Orange Chiffon. Like I’ve previously raved about here, chiffon cakes are the most amazing pieces of flavoured, eggy, cloud you could possibly eat. The magic comes in the whipping of the meringue to stiff peaks, which mechanically leavens the batter into lightweight bliss. Then, the meringue is carefully folded into the mixture, creating the prettiest swirls which eventually meld into a thick, creamy batter. The steps of baking this cake are so gorgeous, I almost feel like I need to recreate this time and time again…

This particular chiffon is packed with orange zest and orange juice, maximising the orangey-ness to a level that you won’t find in store-bought cakes. You will need a chiffon/tube pan with a loose base for this cake, as it needs to cool down upside down. In pure defiance, I have tried to bake chiffons in regular round pans, but those just weren’t as fluffy (in fact they were bad and flat, with a squishy center, which explains why none of them ever made it onto the blog..). It’s an investment, both money and space-wise, but I personally feel like it’s super worth it to have the proper pan for this… to prevent emotional damage (you know that feeling when your cake sinks? That horrible, sinking abyss….).

Most of the troubleshooting problems are listed out in the Matcha chiffon cake recipe, so do pop over for a scan-through.

Orange Chiffon Cake

Makes a 22cm chiffon cake

Recipe from Table for 2… or More

(A)

115ml freshly squeezed orange juice (about 2 large oranges)

4 egg yolks

75ml corn/veg oil

100g caster sugar

150g flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 Tbs orange zest (I used 2 1/2 large oranges)

(B)

4 egg whites

90g sugar

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

1. Zest and juice oranges

2. Beat egg yolks and sugar together until pale. Beat in orange juice, corn/veg oil and orange zest.

4. Sift flour and baking powder into the egg yolk mixture and beat to combine.

(soft peak… keep beating!)

5. In a clean and dry bowl, beat egg whites until foamy and add cream of tartar and 1/3 of the sugar in (B).

6. Add the sugar in 2 more additions, until egg whites have reached stiff peak.

7. Carefully fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, to loosen it up.

8. Add the rest of the egg whites, folding gently to combine the mixture. There should be no white streaks.

9. Pour the batter into an ungreased 22cm chiffon cake pan. Slowly shake the mixture to get an even surface. Tap the pan on a surface a few times to get large air bubbles out.

10. Bake at 170°C for 40-45 minutes.

11. When the cake is baked. Invert the pan immediately to stop the cake from shrinking. Cool the cake completely while it is upside down.

12. When the cake is completely cool (about 2 hours), cut it out of the pan using a sharp knife.

I’ve also tried baking these as cupcakes (topped with whipped cream and a chocolate decoration). Makes 12 citrusy cupcakes (for your next gathering?!)