Orange Almond Cake

I encourage you to cook 6-8 oranges at a time and make a puree out of them and then freeze because you will want to make this cake again and again !

6-8 inch spring form pan or double the recipe if using a 10-12 inch. Note the cooking will be a solid 60 minutes if using the larger pan.

For the top of the cake (which is cooked as the bottom and inverted)

3 tablespoons butter

1/2 dropper of stevia 

2 teaspoons lemon juice or rose water or rose syrup

8-12 thin slices of citrus (oranges, blood orange and tangerines – seeds removed- peel on)

Cake recipe 

5 eggs

2 cups ground almonds into a flour (or almond flour) 

1 teaspoon stevia or 4 packets of stevia 

       or 1/2 cup date puree  (6 dates soak in 1/4 cup warm water and pureed) 

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon salt 

Butter  a removable bottom cake pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan and place the parchment on the buttered bottom. Wash the 2 large oranges that are cut into 8 pieces each and place in a pot and cover with water and simmer them, with the peels, for 2 hours. Make sure the oranges stay submerged in the water. Cool. Puree the oranges, including the peel, in a food processor. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

In a small pan heat melt  the butter. Add stevia and honey and lemon juice and bring to a boil.  Remove from the heat and pour over the bottom of the  cake pan. 

Arrange the citrus slices over the bottom, overlapping to cover the bottom. 

In a blender or a food processor or large bowl, blend eggs. Add the remaining ingredients, including the orange puree, and mix thoroughly. Pour into the pan covering the citrus.  Turn the oven down to 375. Bake for 45 mins to one hour (depending on the size of the cake pan) or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the tin before turning out. Place a plate over the the cake and invert.

Serve with seasonal berries and whipped cream or cashew cream.

For Cashew Cream

1 cup of cashews soaked in 2 cups warm water 4 hours or overnight

1/8 cup coconut sugar or 2 droppers full of stevia 

2 teaspoons vanilla

Drain and rinse the soaked cashews and add to the blender along with 1/2 a cup cold water. Blend until the cashews are a smooth paste, and have a smooth texture. Add vanilla and sweeter and blend until well combined.

Sugar is not an option for a healthy life and stevia is a safe and healthy sugar substitute that can sweeten up foods without the negative health effects linked to refined sugar. It’s also associated with health benefits, and should be considered the first choice for baking. Use stevia that uses organic stevia leaf or extract only. Do not use the  highly refined stevia leaf extract called rebaudioside A (Reb-A).