Recipe

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

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Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

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by Sarah Shatz

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Photo 2 of 6
by Giulia Melucci

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Photo 3 of 6
by Giulia Melucci

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Photo 4 of 6
by Giulia Melucci

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Photo 5 of 6
by Giulia Melucci

Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Photo 6 of 6
by Giulia Melucci

  • Chef

    Giulia Melucci's Notes: I'm calling this "Pioneer-Style" because I mixed it all by hand. The house we're renting isn't equipped with any sort of electric mixer. It worked out fine, but you don't have to do it that...

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Serves 8

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8 inch baking pan.

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  2. Beat the butter, sugar, and orange zest in a large bowl until creamy. Use an electric mixer if you have one.

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  3. Add eggs one at a time, then the sour cream and orange juice followed by the dry ingredients mixing until just combined.

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  4. Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake in the center of the oven for 30-35 minutes.

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  5. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto serving plate.

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  1. Beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer if you're lucky enough to have one, if you're not, have courage, the job can still be done.

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  2. Add the sugar, the orange juice, and vanilla, then the sour cream. Cover and refrigerate until firm enough to spread on cake. About 10 minutes.

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10 Comments on Pioneer-Style Orange Cake

Reply

Great simple recipe! The cake is so moist! Used a pink grapefruit and coconut lime glaze instead. All my party guests love it! And I substituted the sour cream with natural plain yoghurt. It's great for an afternoon tea cake:)

Reply

i forgot the baking soda!!! But it still turned out fantastic!! as a topping i used meringue and my family couldn't stop eating them!!!! :) thank you so much for the great recipe!!

Me Reply

I made this today, thank you!!!! The frosting is truly addictive. I did substitute 1/4 cup of flour with ground almonds and added some toasted slivered almonds to the top.
I confess I used a food mixer, I held out for years without one, but I'm baking too much recently to do it all manually.
It also worked well with milk, I had no sour cream.

N642000053_274921_7414 Reply

Loved it. Used a little bit of pineapple rum in the cake (didn't have enough OJ) and homemade whipped cream instead of sour cream in the icing. My batter ended up being a little doughy, but it was still fantastic, and very easy to whip up (with an electric mixer...).

Reply

Giulia, have you made this with lemons? I lovelovelove lemon, sweet & tart, and orangey, wonderful citrus flavors.

If you, or anyone, has done this, please let me know how it is so I don't waste my ingredients. I know the sugar would most likely have to be increased.

150-1 Reply

I'm sure it would be great with lemons. I don't even think you'd need to add more sugar. G.

Reply

jenny,
this sounds lucious. have you tried the nigella lawson (adapted from claudia roden) clementine cake? it's fabulous -- basically boil up clementines for about 2 and a half hours and mix with ground almonds and butter.

Dsc00456_0663 Reply

This is an amazing recipe - very simple yet it always gets noticed! I think it's the perfect desert -- I love orange flavored cakes and pastries, and there aren't too many recipes. I have wondered about adding a teaspoon of orange extract into the batter, in addition to the juice, to intensify the flavor... Thanks for a great recipe, Giulia!

Dsc_0019_2 Reply

I love this recipe and the idea of mixing it all by hand!

Smsnyc2 Reply

This looks delicious Giulia. May I borrow your clever phrase? I cook "Pioneer-Style" all the time in my electric mixer-free kitchen.

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