Orange Cake with Yogurt Cream

The orange cake with yogurt cream is a delicious dessert that combines the freshness of citrus with the lightness of yogurt. Here’s how to prepare it.

Ingredients for the cake:

• 200 g of flour
• 180 g of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 100 ml of seed oil
• 100 ml of orange juice (preferably fresh)
• Grated zest of 1 orange (untreated)
• 1 packet of baking powder
• A pinch of salt

Ingredients for the yogurt cream:

• 250 g of Greek yogurt or whole yogurt
• 2 tablespoons of honey (or sugar to taste)
• Grated zest of 1/2 an orange
• Orange juice as needed to soften the cream (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
2. In a bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.
3. Add the oil in a steady stream and continue to mix.
4. Fold in the orange juice and zest.
5. In another bowl, sift the flour with the baking powder and a pinch of salt.
6. Add the dry ingredients to the egg and sugar mixture, mixing gently to avoid lumps.
7. Pour the batter into a buttered and floured cake pan or lined with parchment paper.
8. Bake in the oven for about 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
9. Allow the cake to cool completely on a wire rack.

For the yogurt cream:

1. Mix the yogurt with the honey (or sugar) until you have a smooth cream.
2. Add the grated orange zest (and if you like you can add a bit of juice to make the cream more fluid).
3. Put the cream in the fridge to firm up a bit before spreading it on the cake.

Once the cake is cold, spread the yogurt cream over it. If you wish, you can decorate the surface with thin orange slices or candied peel.

Curiosity

The orange cake is a classic Italian home-baked sweet, perfect for breakfast or as a snack. The addition of yogurt cream, in addition to reducing the fat content compared to a butter cream, gives the dessert a pleasant freshness, typical of Mediterranean sweets.