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Recipe: One To Bring The Year In With – Orange Cake

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As I have mentioned at various times on this blog, I do love the festive season. Diwali is an occasion I look forward to very much, but I also enjoy the December festivities, in particular Christmas. I find that people tend to be in a more buoyant spirit now, and I love to elevate that further through providing recipes that add more cheer. This past year has been rather difficult and very busy for me, and I would not be surprised if it has been the same for you, but I believe you can always make time to bake an orange cake. It will immediately improve your mood, as I have experienced time and again.

So yes, let’s bring the coming year in on a happy note. To me, there is something about the scent of oranges that is particularly uplifting, and Nagpur oranges happen to be in season. They are particularly juicy and sweet right now, as well as inexpensively available. These fruits were what inspired me to come up with this recipe. It was such a pleasure to put this one in the oven. The whole house smelled of citrus fruit, and was imbued with a sense of celebration. It was a treat to slice it up after the photoshoot. I like to bake my cakes lightly sweet, so that we can eat more without finding them too rich, and with less guilt over the indulgence. This one has the perfect combination of citrusy, sweet and buttery flavours, resulting in a moreish delight.

Long-time readers may recall a date and orange cake and a citrus bundt that have made appearances on this blog, but this one is different. It has a beautiful balance of tartness and sweetness that I love.

Yes, it really is all about balance at the end of the day. But I do believe in something called hope, which is why I dare to say: I hope that no matter what has come before, let the coming year bring a large share of sweet experiences our way. I read somewhere long ago that one of the things that differentiates human beings from animals is our capacity for hope. It is a mental concept that comes from higher evolution, and is what makes us innovate. That idea has stayed with me.

It is said that we have to consciously manifest what we want, asking the universe to provide it. This requires a positive mindset: thinking positive, wishing for positive things, even as we work hard to bring our dreams to life.

“Manifest” happens to have been the Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2024, and I have been pondering the concept. I know that nothing happens overnight. Hard work must be present, and we must change things for ourselves in small ways wherever possible (and in larger ways if we get a chance to). It’s not like we can sit still and just wait for the Universe to give us what we want. We have to reach out, choose and act. There will undoubtedly be challenges along the way, but what allows us to stay motivated is hope.

I want to say another word here about manifestation, though. It’s not, if you don’t mind the pun, “as easy as cake”. When we put our intentions out there, even with all sincerity, we still have to make sure that we don’t feel dejected if things don’t play out like we thought they would. I once tried to manifest something in my life. I deeply wished and wished, and it didn’t happen – at least not in the way I expected it to. Now, much later, I feel glad, because what did happen instead turned out much better in the long run. But at the time, I was very sad. In retrospect, the lesson for me is in trusting the bigger picture. The Universe knows what it is giving each of us, and whatever happens is for the best. We may not feel that right away, but some day we might. Hopefully. Yes, it really is all about hope when it comes down to it. Let’s enter 2025 with hearts full of hope about what we can look forward to, and how we can make peace with all that has already come to pass.

Orange Cake

265 grams maida
45 grams corn flour
2¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
250 grams sugar, granulated
⅓ cup oil
¾ cup unsalted butter
3 teaspoons orange zest
½ cup milk
½ cup orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs

Cream cheese frosting

1 cup butter
450 grams icing sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 teaspoons zest

To prepare the cream cheese frosting, which you can do ahead of time, cream the butter using a hand-held blender. Now, add in the sugar slowly. Making sure the sugar is covered as you pour, as it can fly all over the counter.

Next, add the cream cheese, zest and orange juice. Mix well until it all comes together. Refrigerate until use.

To bake the cake, preheat the oven at 160°C. Prepare two 8-inch cake tins by greasing and dusting them. Set aside.

Sift the dry ingredients: the flours, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, add the sugar, butter, oil and orange zest. Using a hand-held blender, beat this mixture well until it is creamy. This will take approximately 1-2 minutes.

Now, slowly add the eggs one at a time, beating continuously. Add the milk, orange juice and vanilla extract. Beat well. Now rest the hand blender.

Next, add the dry ingredients to the wet. Use a spatula to fold the mixture gently until it all comes together. Do not over beat at this stage.

Divide the mixture evenly into the two prepared baking tins. Bake in the oven for approximately 30 minutes. Check that it is thoroughly baked by inserting a toothpick. If it comes out clean your cake is ready.

Remove the tins. Allow them to cool on the counter for 10-15 minutes before turning them on to a wire rack to cool completely.

Now you can ice the two cakes, layering them with cream cheese frosting in between as well as on top.

Your festive, fruity orange cake is now ready to charm anyone you serve it to – and I hope that by sharing this recipe, I have brought more joy to you, too!

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Recipe: Sweet Conversations – Orange Caramel Custard

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My mother often made caramel custard at home while I was growing up. It was a dessert we all enjoyed, and it was her personal favourite too. I go back to memories of her and her teachings all the time, but especially more so nowadays when I am missing her a lot. At this time, I tend to have what I call “solo conversations” with her. I never did learn this recipe from her when she was around, and preparing it now is a kind of ongoing connection with her too. While she made hers plain, mine has a citrus twist – it is an orange caramel custard.

My understanding is that many of us take our parents, especially our mothers, for granted. I must have done the same. Even after she stopped handling eggs and therefore did not prepare this dish anymore, it did not occur to me to ask her for this recipe. Many of us with deceased parents are also laden with guilt and regret – feelings of I should have done this or that, and so on. But I believe that we need not be. As a parent myself, I understand everything my mother did, and I know that she understood everything I did too – just as I have a sense for whatever my own kids are experiencing.

Even though I still feel like there are so many incomplete thoughts and conversations, I don’t carry any negative feelings. Now, I just feel like I can connect to my mom at any time, and without it being emotionally heavy. That connection consists of my “solo conversations” with her, and these are always pleasant and light and lovely. Rather like this delicious dessert.

Since I did not learn this recipe from her, I did so over a period of time. I rummaged around with friends’ recipes, always wanting to learn how to prepare it well as my family enjoys it very much now too. While I have been making the plain version for a while now, this citrus twist came to me during a short recent break in Assam, where oranges are now in season. Between a feeling of deeper closeness to my mother, and the sight of those ripe orange trees, I found myself dreaming up a version that upon experimenting with, I am particularly happy with. As always, I am happy to share this with you too.

 

Orange Caramel Custard

(Serves: 4-5)

 

1 cup fine sugar

2 tablespoons water

150 ml fat milk

300 ml cream

4 eggs

1 tablespoon orange zest

2 tablespoons orange juice

 

Preheat the oven to 140° C.

Keep a tray which will hold 4 medium-sized ramekins ready.

Pour ¾ of the cup of the sugar into a pan. Add 2 tablespoons of water. Allow to cook on a low flame, stirring occasionally.

Cook until this mixture turns into an amber colour and is caramelized. When this happens, remove immediately from the pan and pour it into the 4 ramekins equally. Set aside.

In another pan, add the milk and cream. Stir until the mixture is almost ready to boil. Then, turn off from the heat and add the orange zest. Stir and allow to sit for somewhere between 15 minutes and half an hour. Let the flavour seep in.

Meanwhile, pour boiling hot water in a tray and set the ramekins into it.

In another pan, beat the eggs and the remaining sugar together. Strain the cream mixture into the eggs, stirring constantly.

Add the orange juice to this mixture just before pouring it into the ramekins.

Place them into the baking tray. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the custard is firm yet jiggly.

Remove from the oven, and allow to cool in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.

Before serving, dip each ramekin in warm water for half a minute. With the help of a knife, invert the custard. Garnish as you wish and serve. In this kind of weather, I would go for something warming like a cinnamon stick. In fact, you could even let the stick steep in the orange juice for a bit before you add it in, so it becomes more infused with that flavour.

As with many other things, I like my orange caramel custards to look dainty and petite, which is why I’ve portioned them into individual small servings. I also consider this a healthier sort of dessert, since it consists mostly of healthy eggs and dairy.

Do try it out and let me know what you think of this sweet delight. For more desserts, especially with the year-end festivities around the corner, you can explore the recipes here.

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Recipe: Cool As Kheer – Orange Kheer

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If you’ve been using my recipes for awhile, you may already be quite experienced with kheer, having tried out sitaphal kheer, rose-coconut kheer and even kheer poori. So this orange kheer should be a nice, fresh twist on a milky Indian dessert that I hope you’ve been loving.

When I first heard of orange kheer and then tasted it for myself, I was a bit surprised. I had always assumed that citrus would separate the milk and ruin the dish, so when my mother-in-law brought it out for her meal once in the early days of my marriage, I was incredulous at first, and then very impressed. The trick is to have two distinct cooling periods, thus ensuring that the milk has already set before the orange is introduced and combined. When you make it this way, you can quite confidently add quite a lot of orange, which I do – fruit segments, fruit juice and even a fruit cup.

The fruit cups – using hollowed-out orange peels to serve the dessert – were my innovation on my mother-in-law’s recipe. I suggested this idea to her after first eating her orange kheer. We found that it further enhances the experience as this style of serving makes it all the more fragrant. Of course, you also save on clean-up time afterwards. Neither do you waste water doing the dishes, making it a creative and eco-friendly choice as well.

I recently made this orange kheer after several years, much to my mother-in-law’s delight. She asked for a second helping, and she reminded me that it had been my father-in-law’s favourite. A flood of memories came back to her, and she appreciated the sentimental value of the dish very much. Watching her delight made me think yet again of how food truly is emotional, and has such a nostalgic quality. This isn’t something that we food bloggers say just for fun – when something beautiful like this is evoked in a person as they eat, the evidence is clearly seen.

My late father-in-law was diabetic, so we ensured that the sugar quantity in this dessert was always low, so that he could enjoy more of it. I generally avoid using too much artificial sweetening or sugar in my cooking anyway, so this low-sugar version fit nicely into my overall culinary approach, and I retained the recipe. The natural sweetness of the fruit also comes through. Oranges are currently in season, and I used the Nagpur variety which is especially flavourful at this time.

It’s so fitting that a sweet dessert like this inspires such sweet memories. I hope you’ll enjoy it just as much as my family does.

 

Orange Kheer

(Yield: 4-5 servings)

 

1 litre milk

Segments of 2 oranges

Juice of 1 orange

1⁄2 cup sugar

3 oranges (for cups)

Boil the milk on a medium-low flame, for roughly an hour, until it has reduced to 1⁄3. Stir frequently, making sure it does not stick to the bottom. The milk will be thick.

Once it has reduced, add the sugar and stir well. Take off the flame, cover and set aside to cool. Then, refrigerate for 2 hours.

Once it has cooled, remove from the fridge and add the orange segments and orange juice. The juice is optional, but elevates the overall flavour quite a bit. If you have some orange blossom extract on hand, go ahead and add a few drops too. Stir and put back into the refrigerator until cooled again.

When you are ready to serve this dish, you can either do so with your regular bowls, or else try my method of using the orange peel. To create the orange peel cups, cut each orange into half. Scoop out the flesh, being careful not to damage the peel. Set the segments aside for later. Pour the cooled kheer inside. Garnish if you’d like to (toasted pistachio can be a nice touch) and enjoy!

This is a cheerful dessert, as orange simply has that quality of boosting the mood. The aroma and the taste come together beautifully. I wouldn’t be surprised if, like my mother-in-law did today, you’ll be reaching out for a second helping too.

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Recipe: Just In Time For Christmas – Date & Orange Cake

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A merry, merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate! Whether you are reading this post on that auspicious day or a little later, I hope that your home and your heart are both filled with all good things. Christmas is a time of feasting and of special delicacies, and as I prepared many re:store orders in the past few weeks, I gave a little thought to what I might want to serve at my own table during the festivities. As you may recall from the last few posts, travels to Europe are brightening my thoughts these days. A delicious dessert that I’ve eaten many times in the U.K. came to mind too on these memory-lane wanderings. That would be this date and orange cake, and I am sharing the recipe for it with you today.

My introduction to date and orange cake was through the commercial versions that are widely available in supermarkets in the U.K. They come in individual portions, in cups, just right for a quick dessert or a tea-time snack for one. I loved them, and I always wondered how much fresher the homemade rendition may be. Somehow, I didn’t have the chance to experience a homemade date and orange cake during any of my visits to the U.K., but I fondly recall baking some right here in Chennai when a group of us from school met after many years at one of our homes. As the baker in our friend group, I was placed in charge of dessert. I made individual portions of date and orange cake, in line with my London memories, and we all enjoyed them very much.

This week, I set about recreating that dessert again, realising that I don’t bake it often enough. As I am fortunate to have many people to share it with – loved ones, family and of course, you – I decided to bake a whole cake, serving the sauce drizzled on top as well as on the side.

I also decided to up the festive quotient a bit by adding a little Grand Marnier orange liqueur to the mix, which helps put us into the happy, grateful mood that this time of year is all about. I had some lovely serendipities in terms of the other ingredients as well. I get many orders for date squares, in general but especially when there are gifting needs, so I had a whole lot of dates in my kitchen. Plus, it’s orange season in Nagpur, so some of India’s best citrus fruits are on hand as well. These tend to be a staple in the house, and it was nice to put them to special use, in this wonderful cake that brings the year to a gentle close.

Date & Orange Cake

Cake

200 grams chopped dates

2 cups water

125 grams maida

2 eggs

150 grams butter (unsalted)

90 grams brown sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Topping

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed orange juice

 

Sauce

2 tablespoons butter (room temperature)

¼ cup sugar

½ cup cream

1 tablespoon orange juice

¼ teaspoon orange extract

1 teaspoon Grand Marnier (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 170°C for 20 minutes.

Prepare a 9-inch baking tin by greasing the edges and dusting with flour. Set aside.

Boil the dates along with the water, stirring until the dates become soft. You could use a hand blender and slowly mush them. Then, add the baking soda. The mixture will bubble up.

Combine and sieve all the dry ingredients except the baking soda. Set aside.

In a mixer bowl, cream the butter and sugar for approximately 3 minutes. Now, add the eggs and while stirring, slowly add the vanilla extract. Make sure the ingredients are well-incorporated by scraping down the sides occasionally. Then, gently add all the dry ingredients to the bowl, making sure the flour doesn’t fly around. Next, add the tender date mixture. Using a spatula, fold it all together. Pour into the prepared baking tin.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

In the meantime, prepare the sauce. In a pan, add the butter, salt, sugar and cream. Allow to boil while stirring. Once combined, add the orange extract and vanilla extract. Drizzle in the Grand Marnier for that festive and indulgent touch.

Once the cake is ready, top with the orange juice and spoon the sauce on top, saving some to serve on the side if you wish. You may give it a light dusting of cinnamon for more flavour, and add fresh cream as well for extra decadence.

Serve with a seasonal beverage of your choice. This boozy, orange-kissed hot chocolate may just be the perfect accompaniment, with more citrusy liqueur to really play up that zest.

To all my dearest friends and lovely readers, I want to take this opportunity to remind you that it is the festive season, and so it is a time to treat ourselves. Especially during these uncertain times, we must celebrate and give thanks for what we have. Let’s not lose out on joy by counting calories, at least this week (that, after all, are what New Year’s resolutions are for!).

As another year dawns, let me also take the opportunity to wish you all good health and happiness. I am reflecting at the moment on how we are each responsible for making this world a better place to live in. How we treat people and how we treat the planet are equally important. We are at a crucial point where we may lose the planet’s good health, and the pandemic we are still in is a reminder of how closely linked we are to Earth, as well as to each other. Let us heal together and return to safety, putting the worst behind us. I look forward to the way that food will continue to connect us all, and eagerly anticipate sharing many more dishes from my kitchen with you too.

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