Orange Butter Cake

I have been kept encountered this issue for at least a few months if not longer when I wanna read the blogs that I follow from my dashboard reading list. The message "Add blogs to follow in your Reading list :You are not currently following any blogs. Use the "Add" button to enter blogs you'd like to follow in your Reading List." keep appearing, my reading list is empty! This is so annoying especially when I am rushing for times, using my lunch time or when I reach office much earlier than office hours, hoping to surf my favourite blogs. Even though I keep on refresh the page umpteen times, same message keep appearing. The longest I did the page refreshing was more than 1/2 hr until I finally gave up, urgggh... making my limited surfing time even more difficult :(.

Enough of ranting, back to my bake. Recently my house has too much stock of oranges, as my fil is still hospitalized so short of one person to help clear stock. Thus, good to do some baking on it and at the same time can give support to Ann :D.

Pardon for my ugly cake as I was rushing to do the photo shooting before I go out. The cake was sliced unevenly and messy due to the rush, no eye to see hahaha...

Recipe adapted from here.


Ingredients: (for one 8"square cake tin)
225g butter (softened)
200g castor sugar (I reduced to 160g)
225g self raising flour (sifted)
4 eggs
1 small orange (I used medium size naval orange)

Method:
1. Wash a whole orange, cover with water in a small pot, bring to boil and then turn fire down to simmer orange slowly for about 20-30 minutes.
2. Cut cooked orange and remove the seeds and blend it, set aside to cool.
3. Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
4. Add eggs, one at a time to beat till well blended
5. Add the orange pulp, mix it well
6. Fold in flour and gently mix it. As oranges and eggs vary in size, if you feel that the final batter is too soft (ie, not dropping consistency per normal butter cake), please don't hesitate to add 1 or 2 more tbsp of sifted flour to bring it to the right consistency.
7. Pour batter into a greased and lined 8 inch cake tin.
8. Baked in a preheated oven at 170C for 40-45 mins or till skewer comes out clean.
9. Let cake cool in the pan for about 5mins before turning it out on a cooling rack

Note:
1. If the cake turn brown before cook, then use aluminium foil to cover and continue with the baking
2. The orange puree MUST be room temperature when you add it to the cake mixture, so you can prepare the orange puree in advance, does not have to be necessarily just before you start baking.

Verdict?
The cake is soft and moist, a little too moist as I think the orange I used is a little too big lol. The cake is full of orange aroma, so fragrance and the cake will be perfect if it is more "dry" a little bit.

I am submitting this post to Little Thumbs Up April 2014 - Orange host by Ann of Anncoo Journal, organized by Zoe@ Bake For Happy Kids and Mui Mui @ My Little Favourites DIY.