Sunday 30 June 2013

Chocolate Orange Cake


I am in love with this cake. If I ever told you that I dislike orange flavoured cakes, I humbly take back my words. For the first time in my life, I zested an orange. My goodness, the heady scent of fresh oranges was very pleasing indeed. I thought I smelt love. This coming from someone who doesn't care much for oranges.

Orange ice-cream? Yuks! Orange juice? That I like. Orange cakes? No, thank you. That was me before this cake. After I added the orange zest to the cake batter, the aroma got even better. When the cake came out of the oven, the smell of oranges and chocolate was intoxicating. I couldn't believe my nose. Hah! Hah! 


My opinion of orange flavoured cakes changed forever when I took my first bite. I do sound over dramatic don't I? When I was a little girl, my mum baked me an orange cake. I still remember that cake. The middle part peaked like a volcano and it was for my birthday, I think. Being young, I had no prejudice against oranges and any cake would have made me happy. Besides, the only cake I ever ate in Terengganu was the horrible butter cake from the bakery. 

My first bake.

This is the second time I baked this cake. Yes, I love it that much. The first time, I overbaked it. At 40 minutes, it appeared to be done but I have a phobia for under done cakes. So I let it bake for another 10 minutes because the recipe said to bake for 50 to 60 minutes.

A bit dry because it was overbaked.

When I tried to unmould it, the cake wouldn't budge. Stuck because I did not grease the pan adequately. After a few taps, the cake came out but a small part got stuck to the pan. And because it was overbaked, some parts were a bit hard and crumbly. But still, it tasted very good.

It was fun alternating the two batters into the pan. The first time, I was very careful. The second time I was more trigger happy, dolloping here and dolloping there without a care in the world. 

Reminds me of vanilla and chocolate ice-cream :)

To smooth the batter, I just gave it a few violent taps on the table top. Thump! Thump! Thump! Kau Tim! At 40 minutes the skewer came out with some wet batter. I let it bake for another 5 minutes and it appeared to be OK. With great faith, I removed it from the oven to cool.

Because I had generously buttered the pan, the cake came out immediately after it inverted it onto a plate. I was so happy. So happy that I broke the rule and ate two slices :) 

The marbling looks nicer than the first bake. 
The recipe calls for 250 grams of sour cream which I had in my first bake. But I was not so lucky the second time because I couldn't get sour cream from Aeon. I substituted with 250ml plain yogurt and it worked very well. So no worries if you can't or prefer not to use sour cream.

The texture of this cake is soft and moist. It tastes even better the next day. To me, this recipe is a keeper if you are into orange and chocolate combinations. Here's the recipe for the latest addition to my favourite cake list with my adaptations in red.










Chocolate Orange Cake 
Recipe source : Lovely Butter Cakes (page 16)
My modifications and notes are in red

Ingredients :

Ingredients A
- 200g butter (I plonked in the whole block of 250g)
- 200g caster sugar (I reduced sugar to 150g)
- 3 eggs
- 1 tbsp chopped orange rind (I zested the rind of 1 whole orange)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence.

Ingredients B (Combined and sifted)
- 250g plain flour (I used self-raising flour)
- 1 tsp baking powder (I omitted)
- 1 tsp baking soda (I omitted)
- 1/8 esp salt (I omitted)

Ingredients C
- 250ml sour cream
- 30g cooking chocolate (chopped and melted using double boiler)(I used 50g)

Method :
1. Preheat oven at 180C (I used 160C).
2. Grease a 9" baking mould with butter. (I used an 8 inch bundt pan which I buttered generously and sprinkled with flour. Then I set the pan aside in the fridge)
3. Beat butter and add sugar. Beat until soft and fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.
5. Add orange rind and vanilla essence and beat till well combined.
6. Add ingredients B in four additions and sour cream in 3 additions. Beat well after each addition.
7. Take 1/2 of the batter and gently mix with the melted chocolate (do not overmix)
8. Alternate the plain and chocolate batter along the edge of the mould until all the batter is used up.
9. Bake in preheated oven at 180C for 55-60 minutes (Mine was done within 45-50 minutes at 160C)
10. Remove from oven and unmould after 10 minutes and let cake continue to cool.


This post is linked to Cook-Your-Books #1 hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours.

48 comments:

  1. Omo..omo...nampak pun dah tahu kek ni sedap.Cm mmg suka kek oren..rasa fresh bila makan kek oren hehe.Cm tanda resipi kek ni ya Ph.Terima kasih...Coklat dan oren memang sungguh Ngam :)

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    1. CM, PH terpegun dan terpesona (cewah!) dengan rasa oren dan cekelat. Tak sangka begitu sedap sekali.....

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  2. Adoi! I like this orange chocolate cake. The texture looks moist and fluffy. I have book marked it already. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Veronica, you will love this cake as much as I do!

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  3. Phong Hong, I made this cake before but with different recipe. I also overbaked the cake for 5 minutes and the cake outside was so dark that can't see the marble effect :D

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    1. Ann, if you have baked this cake before then you know how fantastic it tastes! I will be baking it again and again :)

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  4. Hi Phong Hong, your cake looks very moist. I love all types of zest, in the past I always just juice the fruit and throw away the zest but now I always use the zest for desserts and such.

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    1. Yen, I have only now learnt to appreciate orange zest. You will be seeing more orange or even lemon cakes from me :)

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  5. Phong Hong, I love citrus flavour!!! I will definitely give it a try!!!! Many thanks to you!!!

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    1. Esther, mesti cuba! You will also fall in love with this cake :)

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  6. I like orange and chocolate too , from the picture , can see your cake is moist , no wonder you like it!

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    1. Sonia, the cake was very moist and tasted so yummy!

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  7. Hi Phong Hong,
    I can see that how a good and perfectly baked cake like this can change your liking of oranges in cakes! I love citrus bakes, and yours looks so good! A slice or two is perfect with a cup of tea!
    Thank you for linking and have a great week ahead!

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    1. Thank you, Joyce! I am glad that I baked this cake. I learn something new all the time. Next up will be more orange cakes and maybe even lemon hah! hah!

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  8. that is a good example how taste can change!
    and it looks really pretty!
    Blog o życiu & podróżach
    Blog o gotowaniu

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    1. Thank you, Ola! I definitely change my mind about orange flavour :)

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  9. Your orange chocolate cake looks so lovely in this mould!

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    1. Thank you, Jozelyn! My auntie gave me this mould when she was clearing up her kitchen hah! hah!

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  10. dear phong hong, that's a lovely bundt cake and you did the marbling effect very well! so now more oranges in the house ya!

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    1. Lena, thank you! And yes, more oranges in the house now!

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  11. Your cake looks yum-yum it is so beautifully done makes me lau nyiour the cake shape of the cake is very nice.very beautifully done the way you do it the colour combination and the shape of the cake from this mould i's lovely.makes me hungry time for my breakfast now boo-hoo no cake but read and butter

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    1. Thank you, EE! That cake pan is the one you gave me. Very good lah!

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  12. Ugh, I hate when cakes stick! I'm glad your second attempt was perfect. My family would love an orange/chocolate cake...and the alternating batters makes it a beauty :)

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    1. Thank you, Lizzy! I love this cake a lot and seriously can't resist eating it even though I'm supposed to be on a diet. hah! hah!

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  13. I love your marbling effect on this cake, very pronounced, like getting to eat chocolate cake and orange cake separately in once cake:D lovely crumbs!

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    1. Thank you, Jeannie! I am so in love with this cake. I feel like eating it again hah! hah!

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  14. Hi Phong Hong.....thank you so very much for taking the trouble to shoot each of the
    steps taken to bake your mouthwatering cake.

    Cant wait to get my bundt pan and start baking. It looks so so very yummy.

    Thank you once again for your effort.

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    1. Hi there! I wanted to do a more detailed step by step but only managed to show the alternating batter. Thanks for coming by and hope you like the cake!

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  15. Tinggg tonggg....

    Hello Phong Hong... buka pintu. I datang rumah you lenggang kangkung ni. Nak makan kek. Baik you cepat buka pintu sebelum I balik semula. Lepas ni tak tahu bila I nak ring your doorbell lagi sebab my doorbell sendiri pun i tak tahu bila I nak ring again! Hahahahaha...

    Your cake looks deliciously yummy. Wanna try and bake la... Oh please God, please take away the laziness that's been bugging me these couple of weeks! Pleaseeee pretty pretty pleaseeee....

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    1. Hah! Hah! MamaFaMi you are very farnee lar! I will buka pintu but no more cake to offer you, sorry....But if you have time, bake this cake. Very sedap tau!

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  16. This looks really good! Love the orange and chocolate combination!

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    1. Thanks, Mich! I now agree that orange and chocolate is a beautiful combination!

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  17. Lovely budth cake.

    Orange and chocolate are good friends, hehe I made this combination before, love it.

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    1. Thanks, Angel! Oh yah, we are now in same gang hah! hah!

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  18. Waaa.... cantik kek with my favorite combo - orange & chocolate! Looks so moist ! YUM! Satu slice PLS ! A huge slice , I mean! :p

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  19. Hi PH! I'm back and in time for your lovely Orange and Chocolate cake?!

    Phong Hong bakes - and yes she surely can!

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    1. Thank you, Alvin! I have a few more cakes coming up. One has ginger in it :)

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  20. I'm never a fan of orange cakes until an organic orange chiffon was sent to me for tasting. Aw, I fell in love with first bite! So send me some of yours in my dream, won't u?? Love the colours!

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    1. Shirley, sure I will send you lots of orange cakes in your dreams hah! hah! There will be more orange cakes coming up soon :)

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  21. Oooo my favourite combination, choc and orange! I could imagine the smell wafting through your kitchen when you opened the oven door when the cake was done. Shall bookmark this recipe, thanks for sharing.

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    1. Veronica, the smell was fantastic! Now I love orange and chocolate :)

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  22. Hi Phong Hong, how on earth did I miss this post of yours. I must have been too busy scrubbing lots of pots and pans to bring back the shine at my MIL's place last Sunday. I can't tolerate dirty and dull surfaces of them. Such a lovely cake you baked. Orange with chocolate is always a good match of flavours. I know there aren't any leftovers....

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    1. Kimmy, you like scrubbing pots and pans to make them shine? You want to come to my house? Hee..hee....This cake was an eye opener for me. Orange in cake is so good. Will try more orange cakes in future.

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  23. Hi Phong Hong, your chocolate orange cake look marvelous. Very nice combo and the marble effect look so nice. I'm having coffee now but too bad no cake to eat. LOL

    Best regards.

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    1. Thank you, Amelia! Hah! Hah! Coffee without cake is better for our waistline :)

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