
This delicious cake means you can have your cake and eat it too. Yes I mean eat cake while also avoiding gluten and dairy if you need to like my family. I have tweaked the classic version of this recipe and you will see it’s easier and more delicious.
You can eat Orange Almond Cake at any time of the day as it is high in protein and fibre.
Ingredients.
2 good sized oranges, preferably fresh off somebody’s tree.
150-160g sugar (this is less than other recipes) /or/ 1 banana and 100g sugar
5 eggs
1/2 tablespoon of Baking Powder
1/2 tablespoon of Vanilla Bean Paste – the special ingredient (otherwise use Vanilla Essence)
250 g Almond Meal
(You can also replace 50-100g of the Almond Meal with L.S.A. Or Flaxseed meal, to reduce cost and add fibre)
After baking I also use 1/2 a lemon to squeeze juice on top after baking
2-3 tablespoons of icing sugar for dusting after baking

Instructions
1. Turn oven to 170C degrees.
2. Line a deep baking tray with baking paper. eg 20cm by 30cm, and 5cm deep.
3. If you have shop-bought oranges wash them throughly.
4. Do not peel the oranges, just cut them in half. (I do not boil them like most Orange Almond cake recipes say.)
5. Put the fresh oranges straight in your blender and blend fast for 20 seconds until mushy.
6. Add in the sugar and blend some more. Fast speed / 20 seconds approx.
7. Drop in the 5 eggs, Vanilla Bean Paste and Baking Powder. Blend more at slower speed.
8. If your blender is full at this point move the cake mix to a bowl and mix in the the Almond Meal with a whisk or fork.
If your blender is big enough then simply add it all in and blend again on slow-medium speed for 10 seconds approx. I use a Thermomix so I have enough space to mix the whole cake in the Thermo.
9. Pour cake mixture into your lined baking pan.
10. Bake for 45 mins at 170C until the cake shrinks from edges and is firm to touch on top.
11. For extra zingy flavour, drizzle lemon juice over the cake surface while it is still warm.
12. Just before serving sprinkle icing sugar over the surface which adds a sweet kick to the lemon drizzle. I normally eat a very low sugar diet but I do think this step is worth it!
You can serve the cake warm with a dollop of cold coconut yoghurt! However it will stay moist and fresh for many days so you can eat it slowly too! Store in an airtight container. If the weather is hot then refrigerate it.
I made three Orange Almond Cakes in the last week for my family and different events! I never get sick of it. Plus my neighbours and friends have orange trees full of oranges at the moment!
One time I made one to take away on a caravan trip with my husband. We stayed in a forest for a week, and had no electricity. We lived in a basic way, but every night after dinner we had some Almond Cake. It was moist and delicious the whole week.
Enjoy. From Shevaun 🍊