Blood Orange Cake

I completely forgot that I had bought blood oranges to add to my watermelon radish salad.. good thing it was beautiful and didn’t need them. So, I had them hanging out in my fridge waiting to be used with no real purpose. My original thought would be to squeeze them and make a lovely blood orange mimosa. However, they are just too pretty and needed to be showcased.  Ultimately, I decided on this lovely blood orange pound cake that was adapted.

Fortunately, this can be a simple recipe to whip up as most people have the ingredients on hand. If you don’t have blood oranges, you could do the same with any citrus that you happen to love (or have laying around). The cake would also be delicious without the candied blood oranges, but for the sake of vanity and a pretty picture, I needed them. The part I loved the most about the cake is the glaze that you drizzle on the top, and possibly dip each slice into. It’s tart, bright, and most importantly, pink. It really just balances out the cake and lends itself to a well-rounded cake.

This cake is quick to put together, and pulls out all the stops in the visual department.

Blood Orange Pound Cake

1 3/4 cup gluten free flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup room temperature butter

1 cup of sugar

zest from 2 blood oranges (or any citrus you want)

2 eggs

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup blood orange juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325

I never have buttermilk on hand, so I usually make my own really quick: pour the amount of milk you need, and add about 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar. Let it sit for about 10 minutes and use accordingly

Meanwhile, mix your flour, salt and baking powder together and set aside. In another bowl, mix together your butter, sugar and zest. Incorporate each egg, stirring between. Add in 1/3 of your flour mixture and mix well. Next add your buttermilk. Another 1/3 of your flour goes in, and then your blood orange juice. Finally, end with your last 1/3 of flour and mix just until incorporated. Pour into a prepared loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour and let it cool. Pour your glaze over and layer your blood oranges over the top.

Glaze

juice from 1 blood orange

powdered sugar

Directions

Juice your blood orange. Slowly add in powdered sugar until it reaches the consistency you desire. Pour over your pound cake!

Candied Blood Oranges

1-2 blood oranges

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 cups water

Directions

Start by boiling your water and sugar and stir until dissolved.

Thinly slice your blood oranges into either rings or moons. Once your sugar has dissolved, turn down the heat to a medium-low and place your blood oranges in. Let them cook for 1 hour.

There are 2 ways to dry them: let them sit out for 24 hours. Or, if you’re like me and impatient, place in a 150 degree oven and bake for about 2 hours.