There are times when the forces of good culinary outcomes are all in alignment, and yesterday in the Sheinton Street kitchen was one of them. The cake worked and the loaf worked. The first, a gluten free orange spice cake, is one I make every now and then, though I keep changing the constituent parts; the second I rarely ever make. I am thus inordinately pleased with this spelt flour creation. It not only looks beautiful it also makes brilliant toast; especially delicious with homemade marmalade.
The cake started out as a Delia Smith recipe from her classic cookery book, but I’ve made so many changes, I think I can claim it as my recipe. In yesterday’s version I replaced the flour with ground almonds and polenta, the butter with coconut oil, the castor sugar with coconut sugar, and the mixed peel with a table spoonful of homemade marmalade and some chopped stem ginger.
Orange Spice Cake
You need an 8 inch/20 cm loose bottomed cake tin – greased (I usually line the base with parchment). Oven 325 F/170 C/160 C Fan assisted. Cooking time around 1 hour.
5 oz almond flour (140 gm)
5 oz polenta (140 gm)
4 oz coconut oil (110 gm)
3 oz coconut sugar (or sugar of choice) (75 gm)
ground ginger – rounded teaspoon
ground cinnamon – rounded teaspoon
ground cloves – a pinch
grated zest of large orange
2 eggs beaten
3 oz runny honey (75 gm)
1 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda dissolved in 3 tablespoons cold water
1 heaped tablespoon of marmalade or 2 oz (50 gm) chopped mixed peel
1 piece of stem ginger finely chopped
Method
Gently melt honey and coconut oil in a pan over a low heat. Set aside.
Sift ground almond flour into large bowl with polenta. Add sugar, spices and orange zest. Stir in melted oil and honey. Add marmalade/or mixed peel/stem ginger, beaten eggs, dissolved bicarb and beat well. The resulting mix is slightly sloppy. Pour into tin and bake. It will probably take about an hour but keep an eye on it. When cooked, cool in the tin and then turn out. And eat!
Tish Farrell 