Orange Spice Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Orange overload! I've always liked oranges, but in cake form I knew I would love them more! It's been too long since I posted a baked dessert. And as always, I am inspired by the fruit of the season. I have no doubt that orange peel desserts started to stretch the precious treat that was an orange. Which makes me happy to enjoy this cake in a seasonal fashion. This is also my first spice cake. My mother never made them much, and if she did somehow spice cake doesn't sound as yummy as chocolate. But now that I am older, I have learned to enjoy cake in all its forms.

I am using once again, Small Batch Baking. A great cookbook with scaled down desserts. I love it because I don't have to bake a huge cake that I either eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner or that I end up throwing away because no one is around to help me eat it. The book advocates baking in the can method that I have talked about before (see carrot cake post here), but I normally do cupcakes to spread out the servings a little more. This time I did mini cupcakes because I wanted a cute bite sized treat that I could enjoy after meals this week.

I also think if you are planning a small Thanksgiving (family of 6 or less), that these would be perfect to make (in mini cupcake form), because everyone always "just wants a bite" of all the desserts. I think a small batch of something that gets eaten completely is better than bringing a whole cake that goes home half eaten. And it's always nice to run out and to hear people say "Oh I wish there were more." You know then, you've got yourself a winner.

Or if it's just gonna be two of you celebrating together. Go ahead and make the larger cupcakes or the mini layer cakes. The "spice" part reminds me of pumpkin pie, but the orange adds a refreshing flavor to the holiday. I've been enjoying these little bites for the last few days. I don't keep cake in my house, so these have been nice little treats.

Do you have any orangey or spicy desserts you are going to make these season? Please share in the comments section!

Orange Spice Cakes
(Makes two mini layer cakes)

4 tablespoon (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing cans
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted, plus more for flouring cans
1/4 cup buttermilk
Yolk of 1 large egg
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
1/c cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Pans Required:
Two 14- or 14.5-ounce cans
1 baking sheet

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325F.

2. Lightly grease the insides of the cans and dust them with flour, tapping out the excess. Place the cans on a baking sheet for easier handling, and set aside.

3. Combine the buttermilk, egg yolk, and orange zest in small bowl and whisk to mix.

4. Place the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and ginger in a medium-sized mixing bowl and whisk to blend well. Add the butter and half of the buttermilk mixture. Beat with a hand-held electric mixer on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 45 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Pour in the remaining buttermilk mixture; then beat on medium speed for 20 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

5. Spoon the batter into prepared cans, dividing it evenly between them. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.

6. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the cans to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Then run a thin, sharp knife around the edge of each can and invert them to release the cakes. Turn the cakes upright and let them cool completely on the rack.

7. To frost the cakes, cut each one in half horizontally. Spread a layer of the Orange Cream Cheese Frosting about 1/4 inch thick on the cute side of one cake half and then stack the other half on top of it. Frost the top and sides of the cake. Repeat with the remaining cake and frosting. (The cakes can be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated, covered. Let them return to room temperature before serving.)

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

(Makes 1 cup)

4 ounces cold cream cheese

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon thawed frozen orange juice concentrate

Place the cream cheese and butter in a medium-size bowl and beat with a hand-held mixer on medium speed until blended, 20 seconds. Add the sugar, orange zest, and vanilla, and beat to mix. Then add the orange juice concentrate and beat until the frosting is fluffy, 1 minute. Use right away, or cover and let stand for up to 1 hour before using.

Baked Apples with Dried Fruit and Walnuts

I actually timed the making of this dish perfectly. Alabama had a strange heat wave that lasted almost a week. But the morning I woke up and saw that it was perfectly cool inside my apartment I knew it was time to make something warm and cozy. Baked apples sounded like the perfect thing. This is a little more complex than the butter and caramel candy version you made in elementary school (when you were studying Johnny Appleseed). I think you'll love it!


I found the recipe on Eating Well's Facebook page. They even knew how to sell it to me with the line "served with a dollop of vanilla yogurt". At that point, I knew I was in. It's also pretty easy if you keep a stocked pantry. My room mate had just made apple cider, so we had plenty in the fridge. I had everything else but the nuts and presserves. I couldn't find apricot presserves at the corner market ran by an Indian family (which means it's an interesting place to visit), but they had peach presserves. So I figured that was an easy substitution. I also used molasses instead of maple syrup (much cheaper and already in my pantry). Don't even think about using pancake syrup. I might have to come and slap you if I find out.


All I can say is that it's the perfect fall breakfast or dessert. And because it's dessert... I never feel the need to make just two servings! I ate it with yogurt for breakfast, but I think it would be good with oatmeal too!








Baked Apples with Dried Fruit and Walnuts
(Serves 6)

6 medium Golden Delicious apples
1 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup raisins, or dried cranberries
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, (optional)
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup apricot preserves
1 1/2 cups apple cider
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a shallow 8-by-12-inch (or similar) baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Core apples all the way through with an apple corer, making a 1-inch-wide hole. Peel the upper third of each apple. Using a sharp paring knife, score the flesh about 1/4 inch deep around the circumference, more or less where the peeled and unpeeled areas meet. With the paring knife angled down, cut a shallow crater around the top of the hole to help hold the preserves that will go there. Set aside while you make the filling.

3. Place walnuts, raisins (or dried cranberries) and coconut (if using) in a food processor. Chop the mixture fairly well, but not too fine; you want it to remain somewhat textured. Add syrup, lemon zest, cinnamon and nutmeg; pulse several times to combine.

4. Place the apples in the prepared baking dish and gently press 1/4 cup filling into each cavity. Spoon a generous tablespoon of preserves onto the crater of each apple.

5. Combine cider and butter in a small saucepan; heat over low heat until the butter has melted. Remove from the heat and stir in vanilla. Pour the liquid over and around the apples.

6. Cover the apples loosely with tented foil and bake on the center rack for 30 minutes. Remove foil and baste the apples well. Continue to bake, uncovered, for 20 to 35 minutes more (depending on the size of the apples), basting every 10 minutes, until the apples are tender throughout. The best way to test them is with a thin bamboo skewer; the slightest bit of resistance near the center is OK because they'll finish cooking as they cool. Let the apples cool right in the pan, basting periodically. Serve warm, at room temperature or cold, with some of the pan juices spooned over each.

Southern Peach Cobbler

Peach season has arrived. Peaches may be my favorite fruit of all time. Fuzzy skin and all, I will quickly devour it down to the stone. My mother used to buy the huge basket from truck stands and it was my personal goal to eat them all before they went bad (never happened). I made my first peach cobbler a few years back. I soon realized making a whole pan was deadly. As I ate it for every meal that day (no lie). So it makes good sense to me, just to make a smaller version. Thank you Small Batch Baking. Once again, I have picked up this book from the library scouting out small scale versions of my favorite large baked goods. Don't throw away grandma's recipe yet, you'll need that for the you next potluck meal. But in the mean time, this one is a great replacement if you are just feeding one or two people.

As always, this book advocates individual servings. But I actually have a little corningware dish that is perfect for baking it together. You need a very small dish, or two 1-cup ramekins. I know you'll make it work. The crust was really good, I just might put a tad more butter in it next time (maybe 1.5 tbs instead of 1tbs). In fact, instead of putting it all on the top. I made two discs and rolled them out to width of my dish. That way I'd have the gooey crust on the bottom and the crispy crust on the top. My crust didn't brown that well, so next time I might put an egg wash on it. I also made my life easier by making the crust in my new food processor. If you don't have one it's fine, just follow the directions of the recipe as it states.

This didn't take much time to put together. I peeled and sliced peaches while watching TV. And made put it together in one or two commercial breaks. I sliced up 2 cups worth (instead of just slicing 3 peaches). My peaches were rather small, the season just started after all. Dennis was off watching baseball with some friends, I opted to stay home and watch The Tony's. He did appear magically at my door as soon as it came out of the oven. We spooned the last of my homemade ice cream onto it and drizzled it with caramel, and I sat down and ate my dinner.

That board is amazing. I just rolled it out to a tart size.

The crust mix, thanks to my new food processor.

As you can see, perfect little cobbler dish.

Southern Peach Cobbler
(Serves Two)

Unsalted butter, at room temperature for greasing baking dishes.

For the Filling:
3 ripe peaches, or 2 cups thaw frozen peaches
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
Pinch of ground cinnamon


For the Topping:1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons cold whipping (heavy) cream
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar.


Baking Dishes Required:
Two 1 to 1.5 cup ovenproof bowls or ramekins, or one 2-cup souffle dish or casserole.


1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preach the oven to 375F. Lightly grease the baking dishes and set them aside.

2. Make the Filling: If you are using fresh peaches, peel them and cut them in half. Remove the pits and cut the pieces into 1/2 inch slices. Place the peaches and the lemon juice in a medium-size bowl, and toss to mix. (If using frozen peaches, omit the lemon juice). Add the brown sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon, and toss well to coat the peaches. Spoon the peaches and juices into prepared baking dishes, dividing the filling between them.

3. Make the Crust: Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium-size bowl and whisk to blend well. Add the butter pieces and too to coat the butter with the flour mixture. Rub the mixture with your fingertips until the mixture is crumbly. Add the cream and toss with a fork until the dough is combined.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly flour surface and knead it a few times to smooth it. Form the dough into a disk and roll it out, forming two 1/2-inch-thick pieces the shape and size of the top of the baking dishes. Place the dough pieces on top of the filling, and sprinkle each one with 1/4-teaspoon of sugar. Bake until the top is golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 25-30 minutes.

5. Remove the dishes from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Serve the cobbler warm (with ice cream!).

Don't be fooled, we ate that too.

The filling, before I mixed it up.