Recipe and Image: KATHY PATERSON
A butter cake perfect for icing. You can make a half quantity of the icing and just ice the top and sides of the cake, if you prefer.
Decorate with orange slices and any extra slices can be eaten with the cake.
Serves 8–10
200g butter
1 cup caster sugar
3 large eggs
2 tbsp orange marmalade
1½ cups plain flour
pinch of salt
2 tsp baking powder
¼ cup full cream milk
finely grated zest of 1 orange
Icing and decorating
400g full fat cream cheese
150–175ml cream
½ cup icing sugar
finely grated zest of 2 oranges
juice of ½ an orange
a few small mint leaves
extra 1 orange for zest, optional
Heat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line the base and sides of a 20cm round cake tin.
Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce the mixer to low speed and add the marmalade.
Sift the flour, salt and baking powder together. Remaining on low speed, add half of the flour mixture and half of the milk. Mix until just combined then repeat with remaining flour and milk.
Fold in the orange zest and spoon into the prepared tin. Smooth the top. Put in the oven and bake for 45 minutes until springy to the touch or insert a skewer in the centre of the cake. It should come out clean.
Remove from the tin while still warm and cool on a wire rack.
Make the icing
Beat the cream cheese, adding the cream until smooth and spreadable. Add the icing sugar and orange juice and beat until smooth. Fold through the orange zest, leaving it a little marbled through the mixture.
Decorate the cake
Split the cake in half horizontally. Use one part of the icing to sandwich the cake together, then cover the top and sides with the remainder. Remove the remaining peel and pith from the grated oranges (including the remaining ½ orange) and slice thinly. Arrange as many as you like on top of the cake (the more you add, I find the harder the cake is to cut!). Scatter over a few mint leaves and finely grate over the zest of an orange, if using.
