Simple and easy cakes are the best, aren’t they? A lavishly decorated cake with several layers is great, but no one really has time for that in »real life«… except maybe some food bloggers. ;P If you don’t have a special occasion that requires an opulent cake you’re better off with a simple one in my opinion. An Easy Peasy Orange Loaf Cake like this one here, for example. It does not have to look super pretty, it just has to taste good! Or am I wrong? ;)
I really like simple and easy loaf cakes. The batter can be done really quickly, and they are almost as quickly baked. Most of the time. Some say they are boring, but I have to disagree. Simple? Yes. Boring? Nope ;P A cake does not always have to win an Instagram beauty pageant to be considered a great cake. The simple ones with only a little decoration are just as good!
If you are baking a simple (loaf) cake, citrus flavors is always a good idea. Grated (organic) lemons and oranges are an easy way to add potent flavors to a batter. You could use artificial flavors from the supermarket as well, but I prefer the natural stuff tbh. I have the feeling, especially with citrus flavors, the »real« stuff tastes better. Also – most of the time you also need the juices of those fruits and why not using the peel as well when you already bought a lemon or orange ;P
How to get even more flavors out of an orange or lemon
If you grate a lemon or orange with a Microplane* (kitchen grater), you get a lot of flavor from the zest. If you grind that zest with some sugar in a mortar, for example, the flavors get even more intense. By grinding the zest with the sugar you release oils from the zest with even more flavors. So for this recipe here, you could mix the orange zest with a tablespoon of the sugar and grind it in a mortar – or just rub it between your fingers to release the oils. Add this to the flour mix, and you will have a more intense orange flavor in your cake. Adding more orange zest also helps ;P
In case you are a fan of simple loaf cakes you should definitely try those cakes here as well. I got some nice ones on the blog – something with lemon, with spinach, with pumpkin, or a lot of chocolate, for example. All really nice. Just click on the links or pictures to get to the recipe.
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the cake:
100g xylitol (or sugar)
1/2 cup (120g) butter (or margarine), melted
3 medium eggs
3.5 oz. (100g) Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. zest from organic orange
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup (180ml) fresh squeezed orange juice (2-3 oranges)
For the decoration (optional):
1 cup (130g) confectioners’ sugar
1-3 tsp. orange juice
orange slices
Für den Kuchen:
100g Xylit (oder Zucker)
120g Butter (oder Margarine), geschmolzen
3 Eier (M)
100g griechischer Joghurt
1/2 TL Vanille Extrakt
260g Mehl (Type 405)
2 1/2 TL Backpulver
2 EL Abrieb von Bio-Orangen
1/4 TL Salz
180ml frisch gepresster Orangensaft (2-3 Orangen)
Für die Dekoration (optional):
130g Puderzucker
1-3 TL Orangensaft
einige Orangenscheiben
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a loaf pan* with baking parchment and grease lightly. Set aside. Zest the orange and squeeze to get the amount of juice you need. Set aside.
2. Melt the butter (or margarine) and add together with the xylitol (or sugar) to a large bowl. Mix until pale and fluffy – about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one after another and mix well after each addition. Add the Greek yogurt and vanilla extract and stir in. Mix the flour with baking powder, orange zest, and salt. Add in two batches, alternating with the orange juice to the bowl and mix until just combined – I actually use a rubber spatula here. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake the cake for about 50-60 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Take out of the oven and let cool down in the pan for some time, then lift out of the mold using the baking parchment and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
3. If you want to decorate the cake mix the confectioners’ sugar with orange juice to get a thick glaze that is not too runny. Spread all over the cake and let dry. In addition, you can add some orange slices to decorate the cake even further. Make sure to pat the oranges dry with some paper towel before, so they do not dissolve the sugar glaze immediately.
Note: Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
1. Den Ofen auf 180°C (350°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Eine Kastenform* mit Backpapier auslegen und leicht einfetten. Zur Seite stellen. Die Schale der Bio-Orangen abreiben und den Saft auspressen, um die benötigte Menge zu erhalten. Alles zur Seite stellen.
2. Die Butter (oder Margarine) schmelzen und zusammen mit dem Xylit (oder Zucker) in einer großen Schüssel hell und luftig aufschlagen – dauert etwa 2-3 Minuten. Die Eier einzeln dazugeben und jeweils gut unterrühren. Joghurt und Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und unterrühren. Mehl mit Backpulver, Orangenschale und Salz vermischen und in zwei Portionen abwechselnd mit dem Orangensaft in die Schüssel geben und verrühren – ich verwende hier i.d.R. einen Gummispatel, damit ich nicht zu viel rühre. Den Teig in die vorbereitete Form umfüllen und den Kuchen etwa 50-60 Minuten backen – mit einem Holzspieß testen, ob noch Teig kleben bleibt und den Kuchen erst herausholen, wenn dieser mehr oder weniger sauber herauskommt. Kuchen aus dem Ofen nehmen und für einige Zeit in der Form abkühlen lassen, dann mit dem Backpapier aus der Form heben und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett auskühlen lassen.
3. Wer den Kuchen dekorieren will, kann Puderzucker mit etwas Orangensaft zu einer Glasur verrühren und den Kuchen damit bestreichen. Komplett trocknen lassen vor dem Anschneiden. Man kann auch noch ein paar Orangenscheiben auf den Kuchen auflagen – die sollte man vorab aber mit einem Papiertuch abtupfen, damit der austretende Saft die Glasur nicht sofort auflöst.
Tipp: Den Kuchen am besten bei Zimmertemperatur in einem luftdichten Behälter aufbewahren – bis zu 3 Tage, würde ich sagen.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Easy Peasy Orange Loaf Cake
- Prep Time: 00:10
- Cook Time: 01:00
- Total Time: 02:00
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Cuisine: Spain
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A super easy and simple loaf cake with loads of orange flavor: an Easy Peasy Orange Loaf Cake with Sugar Glaze. So good you want to make it every day ;)
Ingredients
For the cake:
100g xylitol (or sugar)
1/2 cup (120g) butter (or margarine), melted
3 medium eggs
3.5 oz. (100g) Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. zest from organic orange
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup (180ml) fresh squeezed orange juice (2-3 oranges)
For the decoration (optional):
1 cup (130g) confectioners’ sugar
1-3 tsp. orange juice
orange slices
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a loaf pan* with baking parchment and grease lightly. Set aside. Zest the orange and squeeze to get the amount of juice you need. Set aside.
2. Melt the butter (or margarine) and add together with the xylitol (or sugar) to a large bowl. Mix until pale and fluffy – about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one after another and mix well after each addition. Add the Greek yogurt and vanilla extract and stir in. Mix the flour with baking powder, orange zest, and salt. Add in two batches, alternating with the orange juice to the bowl and mix until just combined – I actually use a rubber spatula here. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake the cake for about 50-60 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Take out of the oven and let cool down in the pan for some time, then lift out of the mold using the baking parchment and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
3. If you want to decorate the cake mix the confectioners’ sugar with orange juice to get a thick glaze that is not too runny. Spread all over the cake and let dry. In addition, you can add some orange slices to decorate the cake even further. Make sure to pat the oranges dry with some paper towel before, so they do not dissolve the sugar glaze immediately.
Notes
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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