Wednesday, February 23, 2011

grandma's orange cake




a few weeks ago my family had a birthday party for my grandfather's 85th birthday.  my uncle hosted the party and as usual, i was in charge of dessert.  his email to me went like this:
O.K. you are my go to person for desert. There is a cake Grandma use to make. It is an Orange Glazed cake and it is awesome. Your job is to call Grandma and get the recipe and make it. As I recall it is a sheet cake with a glazed topping and you stick holes in it and pour O.J.
so here's what i ended up with:

start with a box of yellow cake mix and a box of instant vanilla pudding
add 1 cup cold orange juice...


1/2 cup vegetable oil...

4 eggs...

and 1 tsp orange zest
beat on medium speed for approx. 2 min
pour into a greased 9x13 in glass baking dish
bake at 350 for 30-35 min
meanwhile...
add 1/2 cup butter, 3/4 cup white sugar, 3/4 cup orange juice, and 1 tsp orange zest
to a saucepan and set over medium-high heat
stir gently as it melts
bring to a boil for 2 minutes
when the cake is still warm out of the oven, poke holes in it with a fork
slowly and evenly pour the liquid mixture over the cake
after the cake is completely cooled,
add some powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest to a small bowl
stir with a small whisk...
allow to sit and stiffen up for about 3 min
slowly pour over the cooled cake
use a spatula to gently spread the glaze (if needed)
take a moment to admire that beauty.
...but don't let any of your drool land on the cake.
and naturally, reward yourself by digging in.


grandma's orange cake.

ingredients
zest of 2 oranges, divided into 3 teaspoons (1 tsp for each step)*

   cake
1 box (18.25 oz) yellow cake mix
1 pkg (3.4 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cold orange juice
*1 tsp orange zest

   syrup
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup orange juice
*1 tsp orange zest

   glaze
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp powdered sugar
4 tsp orange juice
*1 tsp orange zest

method
-preheat oven to 350.  lightly grease and flour (or use baking spray) a 9x13 inch baking dish.  add cake ingredients to a large bowl and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  pour into prepared dish and bake for 30-35 min.
-combine syrup ingredients in a saucepan.  stir mixture as it melts, and boil undisturbed for 2 minutes.
-while the cake is still warm, poke holes in the top of it with a fork.  pour syrup slowly and evenly over the cake.  allow to cool completely.
-when the cake is completely cool, stir glaze ingredients in a small bowl and allow to stiffen for 3-4 minutes.  pour evenly over cake.  if needed, use a rubber spatula to spread over any empty spaces.
-can be served immediately or stored at room temperature for 2-3 days.

this is probably the best cake. ever.

go forth!

p.s. also works great to bribe the front desk guy at the gym into letting me in for free.

2 comments:

  1. girl, power to you for taking all those pictures while you're doing all that baking! my hands are always a mess and i'm too impatient to wait for a pretty picture! your photo's always look so nice! and this cake looks AMAZING. xox-andrea

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  2. I totally feel like a stalker, but I LOVE your blog. Steph shared it with me one day and I loved it. I needed a recipe this weekend for my family's Father's Day gathering so I made this orange cake. It was a such a hit that I made it the next day to bring to my Father-in-law's celebration! Again a success. Also goes great as breakfast with a cup of coffee. You heard me, three days in a row and I wasn't even tired of it :)

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